The Silvan Elf Series Three
by DarthFissure95
Summary: The Greenwood is now referred to as Mirkwood, a dark, poisonous forest full of illusion and foul creatures. For Tauriel, this makes her job as Captain of the Woodland Guard harder and she has less time to enjoy the beauty that she treasured once long ago. When certain events push her to leave her home, she comes across revelations and people that will change her life forever.
1. Chapter 1

**AN: Well guys, this is it. I'm predicting that there will be eight or more stories left. Thankfully, they will be slightly longer than previous chapters to allow more time for the characters to really grow and breath. I've been mapping this volume out and making sure that this turns out to be the best volume for the series I've written. Get ready for some major feels down the road. This is the deepest, darkest, and most emotional entry in the series. Thanks again for the support and I hope you're ready for this! Read on!**

Three Hundred Fifty Years after the Battle of the Greenwood…

*The trees were still. The air was still. Everything was still. All was quiet. Maybe _too _quiet. It was in fact odd. The birds made no sounds, in fact they had all seemed to have disappeared.

Then Elros blew the horn.

Following the horn's piercing sound, an earsplitting roar exploded across the woods, obliterating the stillness that was just there.

One moment, Tauriel was able to count her hearbeats. The next moment, she couldn't catch up.

Something was here. Something more terrifying than Tauriel had ever seen before. It passed over her, with the force of its movement so violent it thrust Tauriel forward, burying her face into the dirt. She held her head up and spat blood and wet dirt out of her mouth. A thick strand of scarlet dangled from her chin. When she tried to move, a pain more horrible then she had ever felt before on her back made her scream.

"Tauriel!" Legolas screamed. Tauriel couldn't breath to call for her friend. Smoke drifted up her nostrils and clogged her windpipe.

"Legola…"

"Tauriel, don't move! Let me pick you up," the Elf prince urged. Tauriel felt her body get slowly lifted off the ground by someone pulling her up by the arm. She fell back against Legolas, struggling to take deep breaths.

"Focus now, Tauriel. Focus on breathing. That's it, that's it," Legolas encouraged. Tauriel felt her strength return to her, one ounce at a time as she focused on breathing like Legolas said.

Part of her dress in the upper back area stuck to her. She felt it get torn away to expose part of her back.

"Tauriel…do you…feel alright?" Legolas asked.

"Where—is it going?" Tauriel asked instead. There was a short pause, as if Legolas had to figure it out first before telling her.

"It's heading straight towards Esgaroth."**

One Hundred Fifty Years Later…

*When Tauriel pressed her hand against the tree branch, it felt cold and slimy to the touch. When she looked at her palm, it had black wood chips stuck to it by whatever slimy substance was on the tree. She faced Legolas, who was up in the tree across from her. His bow was out with an arrow aimed directly at one of the Orcs below.

There was a small group of them. How they had been able to so easily cross the borders of the kingdom recently was beyond Tauriel. This was unacceptable. Every day, it was only getting worse.

The Greenwood wasn't what it used to be. Most of its beauty had faded away, replaced by a shadowy darkness that blocked out just about all the sun's light from coming through the trees. So many of the plants were dead, and more and more webs were being found. Webs that belonged to giant spiders.

Legolas and Tauriel were both assigned to kill any and all foul creatures they came across but also figure out where they were coming from.

Legolas's arrow flew, pulling Tauriel out of her thoughts. The arrow struck the Orc it was aimed at. Its tip sank through the front of its head and protruded out the back. With a wet groan, the Orc collapsed. The others, four more of them, snapped to attention and crowded closer together.

Now it was Tauriel's turn. After getting her own arrow ready, she aimed at one Orc and fired. The arrow buried itself through the thing's heart.

"Show yourself!" One of the Orcs cried out. It tried to sound intimidating, but Tauriel could hear the uncontrollable fear in his voice. Legolas gave Tauriel the signal to fire again. Tauriel fired another arrow, killing another. She then drew another arrow without waiting for Legolas's call and killed yet another. There was one more left. Deciding he wouldn't survive, the Orc turned and began running away. Before Tauriel could react, an arrow from Legolas flew and tore straight through the creature's leg. The Orc yelped in pain and fell over onto his hands.

Legolas leaped down the tree and Tauriel followed him. They both caught up to the Orc and flipped him around onto his back so that he was looking up at both of them with wide, terrified eyes.

"Where are your friends keeping the Skin-Changers?" Legolas asked. His eyes blazed with a hate that Tauriel could feel towards the miserable creature.

"Skin-Changers? I don't know about any—_aaaah_!"

Legolas had his grip on the arrow in the Orc's knee, twisting it until bone popped.

"Yes yes! I know where they're keeping them!" The Orc screamed.

"_Where_?" Tauriel hissed.

"The Eater's Webs. A whole colony of them. The Skin-Changers will never be able to get out of there alive," the Orc declared. Having heard enough, Tauriel unsheathed her dagger and cut the Orc's head clean off. She looked at Legolas, and realized that his hand had been on his own dagger to execute the Orc himself.

"You beat me to it," Legolas sighed.

"He told us what we needed to know," Tauriel replied. She stood straight up and returned her dagger to her sheath without cleaning it first.

"The Eater's Webs?" She asked.

"I've only seen it from a distance. It is a colony of spiders that was formed in a clearing near the Echanted River," Legolas explained. Tauriel bit her lip and looked down at the headless corpse.

"What do we do with the body?" She asked.

"What you always do," Legolas replied. Knowing what he meant, Tauriel raised her hand so that her palm was facing the corpse and summoned a violent burst of energy that completely incinerated the corpse into nothing. It was a part of her power that she had discovered shortly after being accepted into the Woodland Realm. To this day, she still didn't know how she had her abilities.

"Come, we must get to the webs," Legolas urged. Tauriel stared at where the body used to be for several seconds before finally turning and following the prince.**

*Tauriel pressed herself against a tree to hide while Legolas did the same with another tree next to her. Not too far now was the Web of the Eaters, where several Skin-Changers were stuck to webs, getting burned in the stomachs by torches that Orcs held. One of the Orcs was a large pale Orc, with a metal claw crudely jammed in a stump where his arm used to be. He was Azog the Defiler. He had been spotted several times by the king's scouts, being seen capturing Skin-Changers and torturing them. When more Orcs were beginning to appear close to the Woodland Realm, Skin-Changers fled deeper into the Greenwood to be safe, but it didn't make much of a difference now, since the Orcs were also starting to show up deeper within the Greenwood.

What tore at Tauriel's heart was that the woods was now being often referred to as Mirkwood. To everyone, it was a dark, poisonous woods that no one wanted to enter except foul creatures such as Orcs and giant spiders. How had it come to all this and how were they going to fix it?

Legolas motioned for Tauriel to join him at the same tree. She ducked low and made her way to the prince, intently watching the Orcs that were busy torturing the Skin-Changers.

"I count fifteen Orcs and spiders, including Azog," Legolas whispered. Tauriel nodded.

"Do we attack them now?" She asked, anxiety rising in her voice. Legolas raised an eyebrow, seeming to detect her urgency.

"We should have taken more guards with us," Legolas said.

"We can't now. It's up to us," Tauriel replied. Legolas bit his lip then finally nodded.

"Alright. Go when I say to. And one more thing, let _me _handle Azog," he said. Tauriel wrapped her fingers around the hilts of her daggers. The suspense was agonizing. Why was Legolas stalling this long?

"Now," Legolas finally said. Tauriel leaped from her hiding place behind the tree and charged after the enemy. They didn't know they had been coming. Legolas and Tauriel had finally been able to spring a trap on them this time instead of the Orcs springing their own trap.

Tauriel's dagger sliced the thick, meaty flesh of an Orc across the abdomen, spraying black blood that salted the ground. Another Orc swung at her with a club which Tauriel ducked away from and she flicked her blade up, which severed the Orc's ear from his head. The miserable thing dropped his club and clutched the place where his ear had been in exctrutiating pain. Tauriel let loose a fierce grin before slicing the Orc's throat with both daggers.

An Orc attempted to catch Tauriel from behind, but she drove the hilt of her dagger against its head, bashing its skull in with a sickening crack that even made Tauriel groan as if she could feel a whisper of the thing's pain.

A giant spider came crashing down on top of her, pinning her to the ground. She dropped her daggers in the process. She reached for an arrow in her quiver, pulled it out, and stabbed it between the thing's eyes. The spider screamed in pain as Tauriel drove it deeper and deeper in. The spider finally gave in and fell over onto its side, dragging Tauriel along with it. She let go and retrieved her daggers.

She looked around for anymore incoming enemies, but most of them were all already dead, killed by Legolas. She spotted Azog, fleeing on a large white Warg. Two giant spiders were left, taking a moment to figure out how they were going to kill Tauriel and Legolas.

"You've thought it through enough," Legolas commented. He then got an arrow ready and shot it into one of the spider's eye. Driven mad by pain and fury, the spider charged for Legolas, knocking him off his feet. The other spider went for Tauriel, screaming along the way.

Tauriel cut both her daggers across the spider's face between the eyes and its gaping mouth. The spider put forth its best effort to get Tauriel away by shoving its head against her, forcing her off her feet.

Tauriel shook the pain out of her head and stuck the tip of her dagger up the spider's chin. She could see her bloody blade through the spider's mouth when it opened again. With one last gurgling scream, the spider went down.

Removing the dagger from its head, Tauriel proceeded to help Legolas.

She didn't need to do what she decided to do. She had been warned against it. For hundreds of years now, she was keeping herself from using her special abilities as much as she could. Why she felt compelled to do it now she didn't know, but she was going to do it nonetheless.

She returned her daggers to her sheaths and raised both hands toward the spider.

"Tauriel!" Legolas cried out.

"Trust me, my lord," Tauriel yelled back. With the lethal intent to decimate the spider, she put forth her hatred towards it, allowing the energy to flow through her arms and erupt off her palms. An invisible blast shredded the spider's body into a cloud of green blood. There was absolutely nothing of the spider left.

Legolas coughed and slowly rose back to his feet with Tauriel's help. His armor was stained with blood. Green blood was peppered across his face.

"I'm…I'm sorry for the mess," Tauriel said.

Legolas let out a deep, weary breath. "Was that really necessary?" He asked.

"It is my power to use. I have been trying to show you that," Tauriel pointed out.

"You are growing more powerful. Please think next time before you do something like that," Legolas warned. Tauriel felt her shoulders sink a little and her gaze fell.

Legolas surveyed his surroundings. Tauriel followed his gaze, and she realized that all but one of the Skin-Changers tangled in the webs were dead. The one was breathing heavily, his chest rose and fell hard and his mane was drenched in sweat.

"They're all…they're all dead?" He asked. Tauriel couldn't answer. She didn't know what to say. 'Yes' was an obvious response, but she couldn't bring herself to do it.

The Skin-Changer got himself disentangled from the web, despite the chains he wore.

"Let me help you out of those," Legolas offered. The Changer shook his head.

"No. I will keep them. To remind myself what has happened to my people," he insisted. Before Legolas and Tauriel could do anything more, the Changer walked away from them, disappearing into the thick of the woods.

"This place has become dangerous. Not just to people like him, but for us too," Legolas admitted.

"What do we do about this?" Tauriel asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

"We keep fighting, and we drive the rest of them away."

Tauriel had a sad feeling that that wasn't going to be enough.

"I know where Azog went," Legolas said. Tauriel's ears perked up, and a tiny glimmer of hope ignited in her.

"Where?"

"He fled in the direction of the old fortress of Dol Guldur," Legolas replied.

"So do we go to Dol Guldur then?" Tauriel asked.

"No. We clear the forest first. Perhaps then we can attack them at their source," Legolas said.**

*Tauriel placed a fistful of blackened, slimy, dead plants on Barad's table where he worked.

"The last element I can find," she explained. Barad set aside a grimy piece of tree bark and took a closer look at the plants.

"There is no doubt that a sickness lies upon the Greenwood," he said, speaking more to himself than to Tauriel.

"Do you think this will help?" Tauriel asked. Barad stared up at her with a look as if he was surprised she was still there.

"It may take a while, but I believe I can find a way to reverse the effects of whatever is poisoning the woods," he said. Tauriel stayed where she was for a few more seconds, as if she was expecting something else from him. But what? She and Barad hardly ever spoke to each other, and it had been that way for a few hundred years.

"Will that be all?" Barad asked. Tauriel gasped inwardly, but kept her composure.

"Yes, that will be all."

As she stepped out of Barad's own room he had been given for his studies, she reached into her pocket and felt the black gem inside. She didn't take it out. She rarely looked at it anymore, but she had to feel it to assure herself that she still had it.

The gem had ended up in the possession of Meleth's parents, and its power had infected Meleth herself. It eventually killed her, and the gem fell into the hands of Thranduil, which then fell into Tauriel's hands because she couldn't help but feel like she needed to have it for herself for reasons that she didn't know.

There were whispers of pain in her temples that no amount of healing or rest was able to expel. It had nothing to do with getting burned by the dragon over a hundred years ago. This was a pain that was much deeper.

She still remembered very clearly the death of Niniel during the great battle long ago, but she felt like something was missing in her memory. As if there was someone else she had known that passed away, but she couldn't remember who that person was.

If only someone else knew who she was trying to remember. No one had found a body after the battle that she really recognized as someone that she knew truly well besides Niniel.**

*Barad set his findings out in front of Radagast the Brown. A blackened, poisoned plant, stripped pieces of dead tree bark, and a bit of slimy flora.

"You have to help me find a way to reverse the effects," he said. Radagast stared on at the stuff with a deep sadness lingering in his eyes.

"What do you expect me to do?" He asked.

"You're a wizard. People expect big things from wizards," Barad pointed out, irritated at Radagast's uncertainty.

"I will do what I can. I was able to use a potion to cure my hedgehog Sebastian, but that was only for animals, and they can only be treated one at a time. This is a dark and powerful magic we are dealing with," Radagast explained. Barad slammed his fists down on the table and whirled around. He stared out the window, which wasn't a good idea, because all he saw was darkness and decay. He shifted his gaze downward.

"I understand."

"What of Tauriel?" Radagast asked.

"What about her?"

"Have you told her who she should see for answers?"

"There is no way she will leave the Woodland Realm just yet. She wants the forest healed just as much as I do."

"But what does she want more?" Radagast asked.

It was a question that Barad couldn't answer. He rarely talked to Tauriel anymore, and she had grown to become loyal to the king and his son. She wasn't the innocent and curious young Elf anymore. She was a true servant of King Thranduil who killed without question and followed every order.

He feared that nothing would ever pull her away from that.**


	2. Chapter 2: The Rune Stone

**AN: I'm really proud of this one for the way it ties into the Hobbit films but also keeps my own storyline consistent. Hope you guys like this! The story should go into the events after the Battle of the Five Armies by the fourth story.**

**As a side-thing, here are some music tracks I like to listen to to prepare myself for writing each story in this volume:**

**Born a Stranger from the To The Moon Soundtrack**

**The Feast of Starlight by Howard Shore from The Desolation of Smaug**

**Dreaming of Bag End by Howard Shore from An Unexpected Journey**

*Dark grass sat still with no breeze irritating it. Each blade was stuck up straight and proud, then pelted to the point of bending over by large droplets of black blood sprinkling the ground.

Tauriel sheathed her daggers and looked around at the carnage she and Legolas had left. The bodies of Orcs, some completely without certain limbs, littered the ground.

"I may have the ability to get rid of the bodies, but I can't get rid of the smell," Tauriel commented. She wrinkled her nose in disgust at the stench of dead that drifted up her nostrils.

"Getting rid of the smell will take longer, but it will fade away. In time," Legolas assured her. Tauriel eyed a corpse nearby her. She got an arrow ready in her bow and immediately shot the body straight in its chest.

Legolas frowned. "He was already dead."

"He was twitching," Tauriel replied. Legolas smirked and shook his head amused.

"Its been harder to find any Orcs or spiders around," Tauriel pointed out. She turned to face Legolas with one corner of her mouth curving upward in a half smile.

"I think we're getting closer to cleansing the forest," she said, hope rising in her voice to the point of trembling with excitement.

"A lot of that can be owed to you, Tauriel," Legolas complimented. Tauriel felt her cheeks burn a bit, but she was pleased. If Legolas was happy, then she was happy too. Over the years, she couldn't help but really start to admire the prince. And it wasn't simple admiration for his skills or even his smarts. It was an admiration that she had once felt for Barad long ago before any potential between them was destroyed.

"I have to thank you too. Because of your training, and for never giving up on me," Tauriel admitted.

Legolas let loose a small grin. He tried to say something in return, but appeared to not be able to come up with the right words.

Tauriel was waiting for a moment like this. A short while ago, she had decided that it was soon time to reveal to Legolas that she had the black gem. She knew she could trust Legolas. He had saved her life when the dragon flew over Greenwood and nearly burned her to a crisp. Maybe together, they would be able to find out the meaning behind the gem and why Tauriel was drawn to it.

"Legolas, there is something…"

Legolas and Tauriel both twitched when they heard alarming screams coming from another part of the woods. The screams did not sound like they belonged to Elves.

"What is this?" Legolas wondered aloud. Tauriel reached for her daggers as if something was going to jump out at them any second.

"Come!" Legolas ordered. He raced up onto a tree and began leaping his way across to reach the source of the noise.

There were a few seconds of hesitation before Tauriel followed him. She felt like a worm was squirming around in her stomach. Whatever Legolas was going after was something that Tauriel had never encountered before. She took one last second to feel the gem in her pocket, then followed Legolas onto the trees.**

*Barad followed the other guards into a clearing in the woods and aimed an arrow at the trespassers. These weren't Orcs or spiders. They were Dwarves.

There were thirteen of them, one of which Tauriel had saved by disposing of all the remaining spiders that were nearby, and throwing a dagger into the last one before it could pounce on him.

"Search them!" Legolas commanded. Barad proceeded to confiscate one dwarf's weapons, and continued to find multiple daggers and knives in odd places in his coat.

_What kind of dwarf was this to hide so many weapons in his clothes_? Barad wondered.

One of the Elves took what appeared to be the leader's weapon and handed it to the Legolas. It was a single-edged sword with a somewhat curved pommel. Legolas stared at it in a sort of wonder that Barad had never seen from him before.

"This is an ancient Elvish blade," he said in Sindarin, "forged by my own kin."

Barad raised an eyebrow. How did a dwarf get ahold of a sword like that?

"Where did you get this?" Legolas asked in a hushed tone.

"It was given to me," the dwarf leader replied. Barad didn't buy it. No Elf would have given a dwarf like him one of their own, treasured weapons. Legolas didn't seem to buy it either, because he leveled the tip of the blade so that it was aimed at the dwarf's face.

"Not just a thief, but a liar as well," he said. He then turned to the other guards and ordered them in Sindarin to take the dwarves back to the kingdom.

Barad wondered where these dwarves came from and what their business was coming through the Greenwood. If any guess was to be made, he wondered if they were traveling towards the Lonely Mountain. But that's when things didn't make sense. Why would they dare travel to Erebor, where the dragon now dwelled?

This was a situation that Barad wanted no part of. Not with the state of Mirkwood and his conspiring with Radagast the Brown already on his shoulders. When he helped the others lock the dwarves up in the dungeon, he traveled back to Radagast's home.

He found Radagast fingering a withered plant in the ground, rubbing his fingers up the plant as if it would help bring it back to life.

"I was supposed to take care of this place. I feel like I failed my task," Radagast muttered to himself.

Barad cleared his throat. "Radagast."

Radagast leaped to his feet and leveled his staff at him. When he saw who he was, he relaxed.

"I don't particularly like it when people sneak up on me," he complained.

"And _I _don't like it when very little progress is made to help this forest. Have you had any luck?" Barad asked.

Radagast shook his head. "No. I'm leaving the forest for a while. Gandalf needs me."

"What? Why? You need to stay _here_. You need to help us find a way to cure the forest before it's too late."

"The way we are doing it is not the way it is supposed to be done. We are wasting our time," Radagast said. Barad kicked a pulled plant across the ground, biting his lip to keep from screaming.

"What do you mean? How are we supposed to cure the forest?" He demanded.

"Tell Tauriel to go find the ones I told you about. She will find the answers to her questions there," Radagast said.

"She's attached to this place, she will never leave," Barad insisted.

"She will," Radagast simply replied. Without saying anything more, Radagast climbed onto his sleigh and ordered the rabbits to pull it along.

Barad felt so helpless as he watched the wizard leave him. What was he going to do now? Was it really time to tell Tauriel to go to the Old Forest and find the two people that could tell her everything she needed to know?

He hated the dwarves that had crossed their borders. They were only going to make matters more complicated and keep Tauriel around longer.**

*Legolas walked past two guards dragging the leader of the dwarves back to his cell after being questioned by the king. The dwarf managed to shoot him a deadly look before he was taken around a corner. The Elf prince smirked in satisfaction. The dwarves deserved to get their homeland snatched away from them.

The former king of Erebor Thror, had cheated Legolas's father Thranduil by holding onto a portion of his own white gems. Trade between the Wood-Elves and the dwarves of Erebor was once common, but had been brought to a grinding halt when Thror refused to give him a chest full of gems. Thranduil had never forgiven them since.

Legolas finally got to his father, who was standing on a cliff that allowed him to see out a massive opening that looked out at the woods. In the distance beyond the forest, Legolas could see the Lonely Mountain, still standing tall and proud since its formation. Legolas looked his father up and down, taking note of the wear and tear he could clearly see in his expression.

"You look exhausted," Legolas commented.

"Perhaps that is because I am," the king replied. The thorns in his voice pricked his tone in a manner that caused the prince to shiver.

"Tauriel fought well today. We have cleared the forest, though I don't know how long it will stay that way," Legolas reported. Thranduil nodded.

"You are doing your best."

"What of the dwarves?" Legolas asked.

"They will stay in the dungeon for as long as it takes for them to decide to accept my offer."

Legolas thought this over for a minute. He normally cared how his father treated others, but he could care less how his father treated dwarves. He himself was never very fond of them. After what happened with Thror, there was a deep grudge that ran deep between the two races that had been reinforced when Thranduil decided not to aid the dwarves when the dragon attacked their home. He remembered having to explain to Tauriel why they had decided to pull back from the Mountain, and he remembered how disturbed Tauriel looked about it.

"The leader of the dwarves. He's Thror's grandson?" Legolas finally asked.

"Yes," Thranduil replied.

"And he was heading towards the Lonely Mountain?"

"Yes. He hopes to reclaim his homeland and slay the dragon."

It then dawned on Legolas what was happening. "In two days, The first Moon of Autumn, and the first Sun of Winter, shall appear in the sky together."

"And the bells shall ring in gladness at the Mountain King's return," Thranduil quoted, "but all shall fade in sadness and the lake will shine and burn."**

*The Feast of Starlight was happening above Tauriel, but for the first time, Tauriel didn't feel like participating. She had reported to Thranduil about her progress, but despite trying to reason with him, she couldn't convince him to allow her to attack the foul creatures at their source: the ruins of Dol Guldur.

To make matters worse, Thranduil had pointed out to Tauriel that Legolas had grown very fond of her. Tauriel couldn't help but admit in her head that she was just a little bit interested in possibly taking another step in a relationship with the prince, but she knew that there was no way Thranduil would allow his son to pledge himself to her.

Sadly, Thranduil agreed.

"_Still, he cares about you_. _Do not give him hope where there is none_," he had said. Feeling humiliated, Tauriel retreated to the halls of the dungeon where the dwarves were being kept. She couldn't help but walk by the dungeon cell that belonged to the dwarf she had saved. A taller dwarf with long black hair named Kili. She found him sitting in his cell, tossing a stone up in the air and then catching it with his open palm.

She stopped, curiosity victorious over any disdain she felt towards him.

She didn't like dwarves either, but not for the same reasons that Thranduil and Legolas did. She found them to be sloppy, reckless, and overconfident in their abilities. They took action without thinking, which always led them into trouble. Much like the company that was in the dungeon now.

"The stone in your hand. What is it?" She asked. Kili looked up at her, almost looking hostile to her, which was contradictory to the way he treated her earlier. While locking him up in his own cell, he had asked her if she was going to search him, claiming he could have anything down his trousers.

"_Or nothing_," Tauriel had replied.

Kili looked down at the stone clamped between his hands. "It is a talisman."

Tauriel's interest piqued.

"A powerful spell lies upon it, if any but a dwarf reads the runes on this stone, they will be forever cursed!" Kili declared, holding the stone up menacingly as if to ward her off. Tauriel stepped back. This was a bad idea. What was she thinking trying to converse with this dwarf? Deciding she had had enough, she began to walk away.

"Or not," Kili said. Tauriel stopped and looked back. The dwarf was smiling now, amused with his joke.

"Depending on whether you believe that kind of thing, it's just a token," he said. Tauriel tried not to grin, but failed.

"A runestone. My mother gave it to me so I'd remember my promise," Kili explained. It was too late now for Tauriel to walk away. Somehow, the attention the dwarf gave her made her feel happy. What would Legolas think of this?

"What promise?" She asked.

"That I would come back to her. She worries, she thinks I'm reckless," Kili said, tossing the stone up in the air and catching it again.

"Are you?" Tauriel playfully asked.

Kili shook his head while tossing the stone yet again. "Nah."

This time, the stone fell inches away from Kili's waiting hand and bounced out of his cell. Tauriel stopped it with her boot and picked it up to take a closer look. Under the light, Tauriel could see the runes clearer. They were dwarf runes, of which she was able to understand thanks to some texts she read from the library.

The runes on the stone meant 'return to me'. Perfect for the context in Kili's relationship with his mother.

And somehow, this made Tauriel feel sympathetic toward the dwarf.

"Sounds like quite a party you're having up there," Kili commented. Noise from the Feast could be heard from where they were at.

"It is Mereth Nuin Giliath; the Feast of Starlight. All light is sacred to the Eldar, but the Wood-Elves love best the light of the stars," Tauriel explained. She could feel herself almost drifting, as if the real world wasn't exactly real anymore. She hadn't actually been able to think about starlight for a long time, mostly because she was preoccupied with trying to cleanse the forest. With a great darkness having almost completely swallowed up the forest, she felt caged inside the Woodland Realm. She wanted to see stars again, but now even the sun had a hard time lighting up the woods.

"I always thought it is a cold light. Remote and far away," Kili admitted. Tauriel inwardly gasped in disbelief at what she was hearing. So this was one of the reasons why dwarves and Elves were so different.

"It is memory. Precious and pure," Tauriel defended. She looked down at the stone in her hand and handed it back to Kili.

"Like your promise," she said. Kili took the stone back without saying anything, seeming to have lost his words. Tauriel knew that she had silenced him somehow and decided to be encouraging. Maybe, just maybe, she would change his mind about the light that she loved so much. A large grin lit up her face, and she felt a sensation she had not felt in a long time.

"I have walked there sometimes. Beyond the forest and up into the night," Tauriel said, looking up away from Kili. "I have seen the world fall away, and the white light forever fill the air."

Several seconds of silence, then…

"I saw a fire-moon once," Kili said. Tauriel turned to look at him. A fire-moon? What exactly was that?

"It rose over the pass near Dunland. Huge! Red and gold it was, it filled the sky," Kili explained. Intrigued now, Tauriel sat by the cell to listen, completely engrossed now in what the dwarf was saying.

"We were an escort for some merchants from Ered Luin, they were trading in silverworks for furs. We took the Greenway south, keeping the mountain to our left, then it appeared. This huge fire-moon lighting our path…"

Tauriel couldn't understand what had come over her. The dread of what had been going on in Mirkwood and the distaste of her strained relationships with Thranduil and Barad were beginning to fade away. She felt the way she did when Meleth showed her the Mallos flower and when Barad helped her learn her abilities. And she was feeling this way because of a dwarf of all people.

"I wish I can show you. It was a sight to behold. One I will never forget," Kili said, shaking his head in amazement at the memory.

"Like your promise?" Tauriel asked.

Kili chuckled. "Like my promise. Yes."**

*The Mouth of Sauron kept his head bowed so low that the top of his helmet touched the ground. Azog had left a long while ago to pursue Thorin Oakenshield, who was on his way to reclaim Erebor, which was a landmark that the Dark Lord Sauron had his eye on to use as a base to further his territories.

Now Sauron was about to send the Mouth away too.

As a black, formless shadow, Sauron gave the Mouth instructions.

"_You are to leave this fortress and travel to Weathertop with a group of Orcs. Wait for further instruction there_," Sauron ordered.

"Why do I have to leave, my lord?" The Mouth asked.

"_An Istari wizard is coming this way_. _You are too valuable to me to become a casualty_. _Go to Weathertop_."

The shadow then retreated through the cracks of a wall and the winds that it caused halted. The Mouth stood up and took a deep breath through his bloodstained teeth.

"What does the Eye command?" An Orc from behind asked. The Mouth turned, his cape whirling around with him.

"I need my horse. I'm going to Weathertop."**


	3. Chapter 3: Part Of This World

**AN: Man, I love how I've been able to tie my own storyline in with the events of the Hobbit films. It has been challenging, but I think it has also been well worth the effort and time. Please tell me what you guys think of how I've been tying the two stories together.**

*A rushing white river spat water up in the air. A cool wind rocketed water up the sides of the ground and slipped down again. The cycle was interrupted when thirteen barrels came tearing through. In each of the barrels was a dwarf, all of which containing the dwarves that had been locked away in Thranduil's dungeon. Clinging onto one of the barrels was a Halfling soaked from head to toe, spitting out water and gasping for breath.

Cries of Orcs stabbed through the air, accompanied by the rallying signal from a horn.

Barad was making sure to stay close enough to Tauriel without making it look too obvious that he was watching over her. He stabbed an Orc deep in the gut with his dagger and hacked at another Orc's exposed stomach. Legolas and Tauriel, along with a group of Wood-Elf rangers were slaying an ambush of Orcs that were trying to kill the escaping dwarves. It bewildered Barad to think that he and the Elves were actually fighting to _protect _the dwarves.

At the same time, the dwarves seemed to be doing a fine job holding their own as well. From a bunch of dead Orcs that fell into the water, the dwarves managed to take their weapons and use them against any other attackers.

One of the dwarves, the same tall one that Tauriel had saved from spiders earlier, had gotten to raise the portcullis to allow the other dwarves to continue down the river, but not before taking an arrow to the knee. The dwarf had survived and moved on with the others, but he wouldn't have made it had Tauriel not swooped in just in time to save him. Again.

It made Barad wonder if Tauriel might have something for this dwarf.

Barad climbed up onto a tree to see things better. He saw Tauriel following close to Legolas, cutting down any Orcs that were in her path. Barad shot Orcs from above with arrows to get his way closer to Tauriel without having any enemies shoot him from behind. It was utter mayhem around the river.

And the worst thing about it was that Thranduil had done nothing to prevent this. Barad wondered where he was now.

One of his arrows flew straight through an Orc's head, tearing through the front and getting spit out through the back. He then leaped down from the tree, knocking an Orc from below down and stabbing through its neck. He disposed of a second Orc that was standing right by him by removing an arrow from his quiver and sticking it in its stomach.

"Go back to the shadows," Barad cried out. He was taken by surprise when an Orc bashed itself into his throat, knocking him back and forcing his dagger from his hand. When the Orc attempted to hack his sword down on Barad's head, Barad took up his bow, slung his arrow in, and fired at close range. The Orc fell, dropping his sword along the way.

Barad looked around for more. He realized then that the rest of the Orcs were continuing to pursue the dwarves down the river. The dwarves had been able to get away.

Perhaps now that meant he can talk to Tauriel. He needed to convince her to leave. With the dwarves gone, things were less complicated than they already were.**

*During the fight down the river, Tauriel had taken one of the Orcs hostage. A filthy creature with yellow glowing eyes that stared up at her with a hatred that Tauriel had only seen a few times before.

Legolas had the Orc on its knees with his dagger at its neck. Thranduil stood behind them with his arms folded while his son interrogated the Orc.

"You were tracking the company of thirteen dwarves. Why?" Legolas asked.

"Not thirteen. Not anymore. The young one…"

Tauriel stopped pacing.

"The black-haired archer. We stuck him with a Morgul shaft. The poison's in his blood…"

Tauriel gulped, but her anger rose dangerously high. She remembered watching Kili get the arrow in his knee, but she didn't know there was poison involved.

"…He'll be choking on it soon," the Orc declared.

"Answer the question, filth," Tauriel demanded, though her voice didn't sound confident enough to be intimidating. The Orc instead cursed at her in the Black Speech. Enraged, Tauriel took up her dagger and twirled it in her hand to show off.

"I would not antagonize her," Legolas warned.

"You like killing things Orc. You like death?"

The Orc smiled, sticking its black tongue out to show that it was enjoying this.

"_Then let me give it to you_!" Tauriel screamed. She bolted forward at the Orc with her dagger aimed for his neck to slice his head clean off.

"_Enough_!" Thranduil screamed. Tauriel froze. Her knife was just several inches away from carving into the Orc's flesh.

"Tauriel, leave. Go now," the king commanded. Tauriel felt heat burst across her face in humiliation. She looked down at the Orc, who growled up at her. Spittle flew from its lips. Repulsed, Tauriel walked away. She could still feel the heat in her cheeks growing worse. She felt shaken. She had embarassed herself in front of king, and she had learned that Kili was in danger. She knew there was no way the dwarves would find someone that could heal Kili wherever they were at. For something like poison from a Morgul arrow, it needed special treatment. A kind of treatment that only someone like Tauriel could give.

She decided that she didn't care how the king would feel about this. She was going to leave, and find Kili to heal him.

She knew that Legolas was going to follow her. She was counting on it. This unquestioning obedience to the king had to stop. For both of them.**

*Barad watched as the front gates to the kingdom got closed and sealed. Something that was rarely done. He stopped Elros, who was passing by him.

"What's going on? Why are the gates being sealed?" He asked.

"It is the king's orders. He did not explain why," Elros replied. Barad almost turned around to find the king, but spotted Legolas instead, who was on his way to the gates.

"My lord Legolas, where are you going? Where's Tauriel?" Barad asked. Legolas kept walking as if he didn't hear him. Not wanting to be humiliated like that, Barad rushed over to the prince and stood in front of him.

"Get out of my way," Legolas warned.

"Where is Tauriel?" Barad asked again.

"She left the Woodland Realm. I'm going now to find her," Legolas replied.

"Let me go with you."

"I'm going alone," Legolas insisted.

"Why do you think she left?" Barad asked. Legolas reached out and gripped Barad's collar.

"Why do you care so much? What has caused this sudden change of heart? You've barely spoken to her for over hundreds of years," he said.

"That was not my fault. I need to see her now," Barad insisted. Legolas shoved him back, his eyes blazing with a fierce anger.

"I'm going alone to find her, and you will not go with me. If you want to know, I believe she left to help that dwarf," he said.

"The taller one?" Barad asked for confirmation. Legolas silently nodded.

"Why?"

Legolas didn't speak for several seconds. His anger had somewhat melted away to reveal a hint of sadness.

"I think Tauriel feels something for that dwarf. My father would never approve," he said. Barad felt as though some of his insides were collapsing in on themselves. Tauriel had _feelings _for a _dwarf_?

"Let me go alone, please," Legolas pleaded. For a moment, the only sounds were the crackling fires from the torches on the walls. Barad had to pull back and rethink his options. He was going to get Tauriel to leave this place and travel to the Old Forest, one way or another.

It was then that he thought up a new strategy.

"Alright, go. Be careful," Barad said. Legolas silently nodded and walked past him to leave. Barad stared after him, his mind working furiously to put all the pieces of his plan together.

What he came up with felt too clever to work, but he knew he had to try.**

*Tauriel reached a cliff that overlooked the river, which would lead to Lake-Town, the small town that she gotten to go to not long after being accepted into the Woodland Realm.

She knew the risks when she left. She was willing to play with them.

Her ears twitched when she heard slight movement from behind her. She reached for an arrow in her quiver, then spun around with it in her bow. Standing a few feet away from her was Legolas, who was also aiming an arrow at her.

Tauriel smiled. "I thought you were an Orc."

"If I were an Orc, you would be dead," Legolas joked. Tauriel returned the arrow to her quiver and put away her bow. She looked out at the river again. A sense of longing she had not felt in a long time came back over her. She wanted to leave the forest, and honestly never come back. She had grown tired of staying holed up in the Woodland Realm without being able to explore the world outside. Chasing after Kili to help him was giving her that opportunity.

"Tauriel, you cannot hunt thirty Orcs on your own," Legolas claimed. Tauriel smiled again and glanced at him.

"But I'm _not _on my own."

Legolas grinned. "You knew I would come."

Tauriel nodded, but her gaze fell away from the prince again. She wasn't ashamed of what she was doing, but she was afraid that Legolas wouldn't understand. He was the king's son after all, and the prince of Thranduil's kingdom. He served his father faithfully even though their relationship was strained, and he had the same mindset as his father. They both believed that isolation from the rest of the world and not getting involved in its affairs was the best option for them.

"The king is angry Tauriel. For six hundred years, my father has protected you, favored you. You defied his orders, you betrayed his trust," Legolas said.

A brief second of guilt washed over Tauriel. It wasn't for betraying the king's trust, it was the realization that she was betraying Legolas's trust by not telling him about the black gem. Of all people in the Woodland Realm now, she knew that Legolas would be the best one to talk about it with.

"Come back with me, he will forgive you," Legolas promised.

Tauriel shook her head. "I will not go back. If I go back I will never forgive myself. The king will never allow Orc filth roam our lands, yet he will allow this Orc pack to cross our lands and kill our prisoners," she pointed out in disgust.

"It is not our fight," Legolas said.

"It _is _our fight. It will not end here. With every victory, this evil will grow. If your father has his way, we will do nothing. We will hide within our walls, live our lives away from the light, and let darkness descend."

Legolas was then speechless. He instead looked at Tauriel hopelessly. He knew at that point that there was no changing Tauriel's mind. Tauriel then thought of something. It was a phrase that she had heard Legolas's mother herself say according to Thranduil.

"Are we not part of this world?" She asked. Legolas's defenses then lowered down even more and his shoulders rose higher as he began to breath harder. Tauriel knew Legolas would not turn back now.

"Tell me, mellon, when did we let evil become stronger than us?"

Legolas finally nodded. He took inhaled long and let out a deep sigh. He smiled. "My father will be furious."

"Then you have no problem doing this," Tauriel said.

"No. I do not," Legolas admitted. Tauriel turned to look out at the river one last time. They had to keep going before it was too late.

"Tauriel," Legolas spoke up. Tauriel turned to look at him again.

"If we are doing this, I want you to swear upon something."

"What is it?" Tauriel asked.

"Don't use your special abilities."

"What?"

"I mean it. I fear that you are growing more powerful, and you may do more harm then good. Am I understood?" Legolas asked. Tauriel felt as though she had no choice but to obey the prince. After all, she was grateful that Legolas agreed to help her, so it was only fair to keep going under that one condition.**

*Barad found Thranduil standing in front of his throne staring at it. He was like a statue, not even so much as twitching at the Elf's arrival.

"What is it?" The king asked.

"My lord, I feel it is time for Tauriel to take a journey to the Old Forest. She will learn about who her parents were and where she came from," Barad explained.

"You are referring to the two that she will find there. Tom Bombadil and Goldberry," Thranduil replied.

"Yes my lord. It is not just me that believes she must do this. Radagast the Brown himself believes it is time."

"She has held on to the black gem without knowing its purpose long enough," Thranduil said. Barad's eyebrows shot up in shock. Thranduil knew all this time that Tauriel had it?

"Yes, I know she has it," Thranduil answered before Barad could ask the question out loud.

"The problem of course, is that she has strayed away from the Woodland Realm," Barad pointed out.

"I trust that Legolas would find her, and bring her back. But what you are asking is a complicated request. She will not leave this place for good until it is cured. You have failed to find a way to reverse the darkness that has covered this forest."  
"I'm trying my lord. Might I suggest an option?" Barad asked.

"Go on."

"Banish her from the Woodland Realm."

"Banish her?"

"Yes, but make it seem as though you are doing it because of her interest in the dwarf."

"Legolas told me about Tauriel's exchange with the dwarf while he was in his cell. I find this event…concerning."

"Banish her, my lord, and I will take it from there," Barad promised. Thranduil sighed.

"She is one of my best. It will be difficult to let go."

"You know it is good for her," Barad pointed out.

Thranduil reluctantly nodded. "I do. Very well, I will send Feren to deliver the message. Tauriel is now banished from the Woodland Realm."**


	4. Chapter 4: I Molded You

**AN: Most of the scenes in this story are straight from the Hobbit movies, but rest assured, I've inserted some of my own stuff here, so don't think that you have to skip this chapter. The scenes from the movies I've included in detail are very important for later. In the next story, we're going past the events of the third Hobbit movie, so get ready! Oh, and also, Tauriel is never going back to the Woodland Realm.**

**Ever.**

**How's that for a tease?**

*Frantically, Tauriel stripped apart pieces of athelas, the weed that she had been taught by Arwen to use as a healing remedy. Once she had reached Lake-Town, she found Kili, several of his dwarf companions, and three children being attacked by Orcs in one of the houses. Once she and Legolas disposed of them, Legolas was intent on pursuing the leader. Tauriel almost followed him, but stopped when she saw that Kili wouldn't make it if she left. The poison in his leg had begun to affect him greatly, and he was on the verge of death.

As the other dwarves and the children held Kili down, Tauriel took up pieces of athelas and pressed them onto the arrow wound in his knee. Kili screamed and hollered in pain.

Tauriel had done this before with Thranduil. Except last time, she wasn't strong enough to keep the wound completely sealed and healed.

_Menno o nin na hon_

_i eliad annen annin_

_hon leitho o ngurth_

Kili began to calm down, his voice lowered to just small gasps and weak groans. As Tauriel stared down at him, she noticed that he was staring up at her with disbelieved awe. He looked as though he never expected to see her.

Tauriel made a makeshift bandage out of a rag to tie around Kili's knee where the wound was. She had managed to expel the poison from him. She was successful.

"Tauriel…" Kili groaned.

"Lie still," Tauriel replied.

"You cannot be her. She is far away. She…she is far, far away from me," Kili said. His eyes gazed upward at the ceiling away from Tauriel and it was as if he was seeing something that Tauriel couldn't see. Tauriel felt something in her stomach squirm, and she began to feel uncomfortable. She began to rethink her actions.

Who was she to break the king's trust in her by leaving without saying goodbye to save a dwarf?

"She walks…in starlight in another world. It was just a dream," Kili moaned. Tauriel almost jumped when she felt the dwarf's hand began to lace his fingers through her own. She felt an intense heat burst through her hand at Kili's touch. Now she was looking right at him, trapped inside something she knew was too late to get out of now.

"Do you think she could've loved me?" Kili asked.

Tauriel didn't reply. She only thought.

_What have I done_?**

*It wasn't long after when the dragon came down from the Lonely Mountain and burned the entire town down. For Tauriel, it was a frightening experience because it brought back the memories of being almost burned to death. Had Legolas not intervened, she would have died.

She could almost feel the space on her back where she had been burned as she heard the nightmarish screams of the dragon and saw the fire that devoured the town. She got Kili, the other dwarves, and the children onto a boat and hustled to get them away to safety.

Where was Legolas? Why didn't she just go with him?

One of the children, a boy named Bain, got off the boat to get to his father, who was facing the dragon with his bow. Tauriel didn't know what Bain did to help his father, but the two were able to bring the dragon down with one last arrow. By then however, the town was completely demolished. Dozens upon dozens of people had been killed.

Tauriel and the others docked on the surface of an island not far from what remained of the town. Bain and his father were missing. The other children, two girls, screamed for them. There was screaming and chaos everywhere. Some fell on the island with their robes on fire, and some fell off their boats and into the water. It was like every man for himself. Very few people helped each other except for the smaller families.

"Tauriel," Kili said behind her as she surveyed the damage. Tauriel looked down at him.

This was a mistake. Everything was coming apart around her. Legolas had gone missing, the town had been burned down, and now this dwarf wanted to stay with her.

"Come on, Kili, we're leaving," one of the dwarves yelled. The dwarves were pushing the boat out onto the water. Their intention was to reach the Lonely Mountain to see what happened to the rest of their people.

"They are your people, you should go," Tauriel insisted. She started to walk away, but Kili stopped her.

"Come with me. I know how I feel, I'm not afraid. You make me feel alive," he confessed.

"I can't," Tauriel whispered. Her gaze dropped away from him. She was trying so hard to let him go. She couldn't do this. Nothing would be the same. What would Legolas think?

"Tauriel, _amralime_," Kili said.

Tauriel stared back at him again, taken aback. He was speaking in his own tongue, and even though she didn't know much of his language, she was able to make a pretty good guess of what he meant. Nonetheless, she decided to deny that she knew what it meant.

"I do not know what that means," Tauriel lied.

"I think you do," Kili replied. That was it. Tauriel was about to tell the dwarf now that they were going their separate ways. She couldn't keep doing this. It was time to end this now before things got more complicated.

Before she could say a word, she stiffened. Someone was watching them. She knew who it was.

"My lord Legolas," Tauriel said.

"Take your leave of the dwarf. You are needed elsewhere," Legolas commanded. Kili shot a disdainful look at the prince, but turned around to leave. He stopped and came back to Tauriel, opening her hand to put something in it. He closed her fingers around the object. It felt cool and round. Tauriel didn't have to open up her hand to know what it was.

"Keep it. As a promise," Kili said. Once Kili was onboard the boat and already drifting away, Tauriel opened her hand to look at the rune stone.

_Return to me_.

Tauriel wasn't sure if that was a promise she could keep.**

*Tauriel believed she had known Legolas long enough to see that something was troubling him. She could see it in his eyes. Weights of concern and even a dash of sorrow that made Legolas look like an older Man rather than an Elf.

"You saw something out there," Tauriel said to him. They were both walking through the camp that had been built up by the survivors from Lake-Town.

"The Orc I pursued out of Lake-Town, I know who he is. Bolg, a spawn of Azog the Defiler. An Orc pack was waiting for him on the outskirts of Esgaroth. They fled into the North. These Orcs were different from the others, they bore a mark I have not seen for a long time. The mark of Gundabad," Legolas explained. Legolas stopped, as if he needed to allow those words to sink in for a moment.

"Gundabad?" Tauriel asked.

"An Orc stronghold on the far side of the Misty Mountains."

"My lord, Legolas," a voice called out. Riding towards them on a white horse was one of the king's guards, Feren.

"I bring word from your father. You are to return to him immediately," he announced. Legolas nodded. "Come, Tauriel."

"My lord," Feren said, "Tauriel is banished."

Shock flitted across Legolas's eyes. "Banished?"

Tauriel felt her insides grow hot. Steam curled around her cheeks and her heart skipped several beats. Her jaw dropped and tears rose in her eyes.

"You can tell my father if there is no place for Tauriel there is no place for _me_," Legolas declared. Tauriel inched closer to Legolas.

"Legolas, it is your king's command," she reminded him.

"He is my king, but he does not command my heart," Legolas replied. He began to walk away towards his own waiting horse. "I ride North. Will you come with me?"

"To where?"

"To Gundabad."**

*Tauriel then found herself riding behind Legolas on his horse. She thought about what Feren had said. The truth was, she shouldn't have been so shocked about Thranduil banishing her. She didn't know how much he knew about her and Kili, but it didn't matter now. She would have to ask the king for mercy later.

"Gundabad was the place I went to when you had your final trial with my father," Legolas explained as they rode.

"What happened there?" Tauriel asked.

"It's better to explain it when we get there."**

*Legolas and Tauriel hiked up a steep hill made up of gray rock. The evening sun was setting behind them in a scarlet haze, similar to the color that the fortress before them was bathed in. There was part of a wall sticking out from a mountain of rock, with another part sticking out from a mountain on the opposite side, and several walls standing from the center.

"Gundabad. What lies beyond?" Tauriel asked.

"An old enemy. The ancient kingdom of Angmar. This fortress was once its stronghold. It is where they kept their great armories, forged their weapons of war," Legolas replied.

In a small window in one of the walls from the center, Tauriel could see a light. A shadow moved.

"A light. I see movement," Tauriel pointed out. Legolas inched forward and squinted to see what Tauriel was seeing. The light in the window faded out into darkness.

"We wait for the cover of night," Legolas said, "it is a foul place, Tauriel. In another Age, our people waged war on those lands."

Legolas then looked away, gazing down at the ground instead as if in very deep thought. His whole being seemed to transport somewhere else. Something was bothering him. He finally looked at Tauriel right in the eyes.

"My mother died there."

What?

But Thranduil told her…

Thranduil had _lied _to her. Why did he do that?

"My father does not speak of it," Legolas continued.

Elbes. Was the name of Legolas's mother not Elbes?

"There is no grave. No memory. Nothing."

The whole story about the fate of Elbes was a lie?

Tauriel tried hard to contain her astonishment. She managed to keep her shock hidden from Legolas. But she knew that she had to tell Legolas what she knew.

"Your father told me that your mother's name was Elbes, and that she died defending the Woodland Realm right outside the forest," she said.

"My father lied to you. He lied to us both. There _was _a woman named Elbes, and she did die outside the forest by protecting it, but that wasn't my mother. My real mother left me and my father before I could really recognize her as my mother. She came here to Gundabad, and never came back," Legolas replied.**

*Legolas and Tauriel stayed near the fortress long enough to watch an army of Orcs and trolls led by Bolg march out of Gundabad to head towards the Lonely Mountain. When the two Elves raced back, they got to the ruined city of Dale near the Mountain, and discovered that a gigantic battle was taking place. It was a battle that involved the Wood-Elves, dwarves, Azog's own army, and the people of Lake-Town. It was a battle to determine who would have the Mountain.

Among the ones fighting within Dale was the wizard Gandalf the Grey and the Halfling that Tauriel saw riding one of the barrels the dwarves used to escape the Woodland Realm. Legolas appeared to know him. How exactly was a question that Tauriel didn't have an answer to.

"There is a second army," Legolas informs the wizard, "Bolg leads a force of Gundabad Orcs, they are almost upon us."

"Gundabad?" Gandalf asked. He wearily sighed. "This was their plan all along. Azog engages our forces, then Bolg sweeps in from the North."

"The North?" The Halfling asked. "Where is the North exactly?"

"Ravenhill," Gandalf answered.

"Ravenhill. Thorin is out there, and Fili and Kili, they're all out there!" The Halfling yelled. Tauriel looked up at the hill they were all looking at now.

Kili was up there.

Tauriel reached into her pocket and felt along the stone he had given her, along with her own precious belonging. The black gem.

Regardless of how she felt about Kili, she knew that she had to help him so that he can fulfill his promise. The one he had told her about not long ago in his cell.

She felt something like a knife gently scrape around in her head.

Where was Thranduil?

Then she heard it. The familiar blast of the horn, signaling all of the Elves to regroup. Was the king planning to pull out of the fight?

A fierce anger towards Thranduil rekindled within her and her hands became fists. No longer would she take the king's madness. It was time to confront him. It was time that he answered to his lies and his selfishness.

Tauriel slipped away from the others to find the king before it was too late.**

*Thranduil cut down a stray Orc, feeling his anger boil over before he could get himself and his people away from the fight. After an effort to fight for the white gems within the Mountain that he wanted, he had realized that he was being foolish, but he wasn't going to stay and help the dwarves fight the Orcs either.

After the Halfling had given him and the new Master of Lake-Town Bard the Arkenstone, hoping it could be used as payment to make a fair trade, the new King under the Mountain Thorin had lashed out at the Halfling instead and had declared war over peace.

He stopped short when he saw Tauriel standing in his way.

"You will go no further. You will not turn away. Not this time," Tauriel declared.

Thranduil remembered when the dragon Smaug had attacked the Lonely Mountain. How he had gathered his people to aid the dwarves against the dragon. How he had decided at the last minute that he would not risk the lives of his people.

How he had decided that turning away was good revenge for how the dwarves had wronged him.

He remembered coming back, and seeing the confused look on Tauriel's face. Before him, he saw a young Elf woman that had been pushed so far over the edge because he shoved. He had tried to mold Tauriel into the kind of warrior that he wanted, but he failed no matter how hard he tried.

Even his son, the only family he had left, had disobeyed his orders. Because he cared more for Tauriel then he cared for him.

"Get out of my way," Thranduil spat. His tone sounded venomous.

"The dwarves will be slaughtered," Tauriel replied. Tears glistened in her beautiful eyes and leaked down her cheeks.

"Yes, they will die," Thranduil admitted, but he said the words with a hateful smile on his face and his lips twitched in revulsion at the thought of the dwarves.

"Today. Tomorrow. One year hence, a hundred years from now," Thranduil declared, "what does it matter? They are mortal."

Thranduil stepped closer to Tauriel, his towering figure began to loom over the disgustingly gentle Tauriel.

He had tried to mold her…

In one sudden movement, Tauriel had her bow out with an arrow aimed directly at the king's face.

"You think your life is worth more than theirs, when there is no love in it?" She hissed. Her voice trembled as she spoke and more tears fell. Good. Thranduil had Tauriel in a position where she was scared. Therefore, she was weak.

"There is no love in you," she declared.

Barad was right to suggest that she be banished, but not just for the reasons he implied.

Thranduil looked away from her acting as if he was going to turn away, but then swung his sword in a complete line. There was a deadly cracking sound and Tauriel gasped as she dropped her bow, which was in two pieces now.

"What do _you _know of love? _Nothing_," Thranduil sneered. He pointed the tip of his sword at Tauriel's neck. Without having to give it much thought, Thranduil picked something else to say. Something to make Tauriel's defenses even weaker. He could tame her. He did it once when he challenged her in the final trial, he can do it again.

"What you feel for that dwarf is not real. Do you think it is love? Are you ready to _die _for it?" Thranduil demanded. He could see Tauriel's shoulders rising and dropping even faster now. Tears snaked down and stained her robe.

Before Thranduil could say another word however, a sword from the right dipped in and pushed Thranduil's blade away from Tauriel.

With eyes as wide as they could get, Thranduil turned to see his own son staring him down with anger completely sown in his face.

"If you harm her, you will have to kill me," Legolas said.

Whatever feelings of hatred and anger Thranduil had just seconds before was melted down into a cold yearning. The yearning that he had felt for so long about his long lost wife. Now, his son had seen what he almost did, and he realized he was about to lose someone else. He stood there speechless, not knowing what to say or do. He watched his son side with Tauriel and tell her that he will go with her. They both left Thranduil standing in the snow with his mouth agape.

"Legolas, forgive me…"

Legolas didn't hear him.

He was already long gone.**


	5. Chapter 5: All I Ask

**AN: Ugh, the feels! Um, anyway, read on!**

*A young female Elf knelt in the snow, weeping over the pale body of a dwarf. The sun set behind the Elf, shining her tears as they fell. An Elf prince, weary from battle and years of being lied to and caged within his home, watched her with regret that sank deep down his stomach.

The prince noticed she was wrapping the dwarf's fingers around a stone. What it was and where she got it from was beyond him but he guessed that the stone had belonged to the dwarf.

The dead dwarf in Tauriel's arms was Kili.

Tauriel pressed Kili's fisted hand to her lips and squeezed her eyes shut. Legolas had only seen that kind of face on her once before. Six hundred years ago, Tauriel watched her dear friend Meleth pass on. It was a tragedy experienced too early in Tauriel's short life.

Legolas turned his back on her. He didn't say a word. He had been too late to help Tauriel save Kili, but he was able to save Tauriel from Bolg, killing him by plunging a dagger through his head.**

*Thranduil walked around in a deserted tower that sat on Ravenhill. All around him were bodies of Orcs, some with limbs hacked off. Whoever had come through here fought hard. He heard footsteps. He recognized them immediately. They belonged to his son.

Legolas came around a corner and stopped. Grief brimmed in his eyes.

At the sight of his father, Legolas's gaze dropped to the ground.

_If only I hadn't told Tauriel not to_…

Tauriel honored her word not to use her abilities. And because of that, she lost yet another person that was dear to her.

"I…cannot go back," he said. His tone was sad but it also sounded final. He walked past his father, trying to get away as quickly as he can so that he didn't have to speak to him again.

"Where will you go?" Thranduil asked. Legolas stopped and turned around.

"I do not know."

"Go North. Find the Dunedain. There is a young Ranger amongst them, you should meet him. His father Arathorn was a good man. His son might grow to be a great one," Thranduil explained.

Legolas pondered this. If he went to go search for this young man, that meant he would be fulfilling a last wish of his father's, but it also meant he was given a purpose. Something he didn't feel he had right now.

"What is his name?" He asked.

"He is known in the wild as Strider. His true name you must discover for yourself," Thranduil replied. Legolas decided that was enough. He had direction, and he had a goal now. He had to trust his father on this one, even though trust in his father was something he lacked. He turned again to leave.

"Legolas," the king called out.

Legolas stopped again but he didn't turn to look at his father this time.

"Your mother loved you. More than anyone. More than life," Thranduil said. They were his father's last words to him. A way to make amends for his lies. They didn't erase Legolas's memories of his father's deception, but his reassuring words were enough. He half-turned and looked at his father, who parted his hand from where his heart was and held it out as a symbol that he loved him also.

Half-heartedly, Legolas returned the gesture without a word and walked away, leaving everything that he knew behind. He never intended on looking back.**

* Thranduil watched his son go with a satisfied smile. He was happy to have at least parted with Legolas on somewhat stable terms. He trusted Legolas would find what he was supposed to be looking for.

He exited the tower to find Tauriel, cradling the body of the dwarf in her arms. She somehow looked older than she really was. Her grief for her loss had drained away some of her youthful appearance.

Something about what Thranduil saw moved even himself to tears.

"They want to bury him," Tauriel said. The king nodded and his eyes turned misty.

"Yes."

"If this is love, I do not want it. Take it from me. _Please_."

More tears spilled down Tauriel's cheeks and her chin trembled.

"Why does it hurt so much?" She begged.

Thranduil took a shaky step forward. He himself had tears leaking from his eyes now, but wasn't just crying for Tauriel. He could see himself in Tauriel's place, with his wife cradled in his arms. He could remember love turning cold, pricked by icicles that continued to hurt him.

_Why does it hurt so much_?

"Because it was real," the king declared. Tauriel stared up at him, pain twisting her features. With a trembling breath, she bent down and kissed the dwarf on the lips. Thranduil felt it was an act of defiance against him. To show him that Tauriel had had every right to love the dwarf.**

*Kili wasn't the only dwarf that had fallen during the battle. His brother Fili and their king and uncle Thorin had fallen as well by Azog's hand. There was a funeral to honor all three of them, of which Tauriel and Thranduil were the only Elves that attended.

Tauriel watched as Kili vanished under a white sheet. His face looked so calm and at peace. It wasn't at all like the look of pain he had when Bolg had stabbed him in the chest. Tauriel believed that that whole scene was going to play over and over again in her sleep. She was almost afraid to ever go to sleep again.

"Excuse me," a gentle voice said. Tauriel looked next to her to see a dwarf staring up at her. It was one of the dwarves that was with Kili when she was healing him.

"Bofur, at your service. I believe Kili would want you to keep this," he said. He held up the rune stone, which Tauriel had given to the other dwarves to have buried with Kili.

Tauriel's eyes burned at the sight of the stone. Through the wet haze, she could still clearly make out the runes.

_Return to me_.

She did return to him, and she failed to save him.

Where was Legolas? Why did he leave her?

He felt guilty didn't he? Guilty for making Tauriel not to use her powers. She wasn't angry at him. She knew he was only trying to help her. Her powers had become unusually stronger. She was able to use a devastating magic that shredded a giant spider into nothing. What if an innocent person were to end up in her path of destruction that she were to unleash. She would never forgive herself for that.

But he didn't have to leave. He didn't have to…

She was yanked out of her thoughts when Bofur put the stone in her hand.

"He would want you to keep this," he said again. Tauriel didn't answer. She placed her other hand over the stone, realizing that both of her hands were trembling now. Among the crowd, she spotted Barad. He was staring straight at her.

Tauriel slipped the stone in her pocket. Her headache was growing fiercer. She wondered if it was from the nasty fall down the hill she had gotten while fighting Bolg or something else entirely. Either way, she was determined now to talk to Barad.**

*After the funeral, Barad got to Tauriel first. He noticed the pain in her eyes and hesitated to say something. He wanted to support her, help her. In any way he could. The dwarf she had fallen in love with had died in the battle and he could see that it had taken a great toll on Tauriel.

"Tauriel," he finally spoke. Tauriel's eyes gazed up at him. A tear leaked out from the corner of her eye and slid down her pale cheek.

"We need to talk," Barad said. Tauriel bit her lip and gazed up at the sky.

"I'm listening."

"I was the one that had you banished from the Woodland Realm," Barad confessed.

"What?"

"I did it because you had become attached to the woods. I need you to leave the kingdom. It's time for you to learn where you came from and who your parents were."

"Does it matter anymore? _Does it_? They're dead! My parents are _dead_!" Tauriel screamed. She shoved Barad hard enough for him to fall off his feet.

"Tauriel, wait…"

"Why do you care? I thought you didn't want us to speak to each other again," Tauriel pointed out.

"I'm hoping to make amends. But it's not just me that says you must do this. Radagast the Brown believes it is time as well."

Recognition dawned in Tauriel's eyes. She knew who he was. Long ago, she would sneak to Radagast's house to try and learn more about her family.

"Where am I supposed to go?" Tauriel asked.

"To the Old Forest. There are two beings there, who can tell you what you need to know, and what to do with…with the gem," Barad said.

"What are their names?"

"They are known as Tom Bombadil and Goldberry. They are two of the last of the Maiar race that dwell among us on Middle-Earth," Barad answered.**

*Tauriel listened to Barad, knowing with all her heart that it was indeed time for her to leave the Woodland Realm. Legolas did it, so should she. Everyone that she knew from the Woodland Realm had either died or had left, and she didn't know how much longer she can live in the same place as King Thranduil.

She had to let go and move on from some of the things she held dear. She knew it was time to discover where she came from. She had been in the dark long enough. After everything that had happened since she left the kingdom to find Kili, she knew there was no going back.

Now it was just a matter of telling Thranduil. She felt he deserved to know.

As Tauriel told Thranduil where she was going, she could see a hint of grief dot the king's expression. He was not taking the news very easily.

"You know what you must do," Thranduil finally replied with a dismissive shrug. But Tauriel wasn't done with him.

"You lied to me about Legolas's mother. You scarred me. You almost killed me. You hated me for loving Kili. You kept secrets from me and you deceived me. I can't trust you anymore," Tauriel declared.

"I don't expect you to. You will be missed, Tauriel. You were a strong warrior in my kingdom."

Tauriel turned to leave, but Thranduil stopped her with a hand on her shoulder.

"Tauriel, I knew you had the black gem all along."

Tauriel gasped and whirled around to face him again. Sweat broke out on her face and her eyes were wide with panic.

"I knew you had it, but I let you keep it. It's yours. Do you know why?"

Tauriel didn't reply. Every part of her trembled. It was as if a mild earthquake was happening inside her.

"I let you keep it, because the gem was your mother's."

Tauriel pulled the black gem out of her pocket and stared at it long and hard. This thing…this dark, evil _thing _was her mother's?

"I don't believe the gem has that color because of her. It was tainted by the Dark Lord Morgoth long ago when he took it from her."

"How do you know all this?" Tauriel asked.

"Your mother had a friend. A Silvan Elf named Faenith, who aided your mother in a fight against Morgoth with the gem, and during that battle she sacrificed herself for your mother. Faenith was my sister."

"Your sister?" Tauriel asked with a gasp.

"My mother was with a Silvan Elf first before she met my father, and gave birth to Faenith. I got to know her long enough to care for her before she died. She died protecting your mother, who was foolish to think she could take on the Dark Lord."

Did that explain why Thranduil had some kind of hostility against Tauriel all these years? Why he pushed her so hard and eventually almost killed her?

"My lord, did you ever learn my mother's name?" Tauriel asked.

"No. She only called herself 'Her' or 'She'. I met her when Faenith vowed to stay by her side and I knew she carried a gem. That is the only time I saw her. Alagos had described your mother to me and that is when I knew that it was the same woman Faenith traveled with."

Alagos? That name sounded familiar.

Tauriel's confusion of the name however was replaced by a sympathy towards Thranduil that she had never felt before. "My lord, I'm…

Thranduil raised a hand to silence her. "Go now. Go to the Old Forest. Find out where you came from, and who your parents were. If they are still alive, just do one thing for me."

"What is it?"

"Don't hate each other like me and my family did. I love you, Tauriel."

As if Tauriel hadn't lost enough tears already, more tears fell down her cheeks and she inhaled to keep more in her eyes. She had to be strong now.

"I forgive you, my lord."

Thranduil nodded. "That is all I ask. I do not deserve it."

Tauriel finally turned her back on the king one last time. That was the last time she saw the King of the Woodland Realm.**

*Barad was waiting for Tauriel outside the city gates of Dale. Snow fell and peppered the ground around the two Elves.

"Are you ready?" Barad asked. Tauriel had a sack with her, with enough food to last her and Barad both for weeks, generously provided by both Thranduil and the new king of Dale Bard. Tauriel looked back, able to see the Lonely Mountain pointed up at the cloudy sky.

"Tauriel?"

"Yes. I'm ready," Tauriel answered.**


	6. Chapter 6: One Last Time

**AN: A shorter entry this time, but I felt that this entry covered what needed to be covered to pave the way for the next one. Hope you guys like what I have so far!**

*The moon wasn't visible that night. Clouds kept the moon's light sealed away from Weathertop, bathing it with an impenetrable darkness.

Everyone on Weathertop was sleeping except for the Mouth of Sauron. He could never sleep again. He watched from where he stood on a tall pillar of rock at the lands that stretched out before him.

Something like a sharp cold breeze pricked at the Mouth's face, freezing his rotted teeth. The Mouth's hand strayed to the sword resting in his scabbard. He pulled it out and turned around behind him to see that a small but raging fire had randomly sprouted up from the ground.

_Send your best warrior_…

A malicious voice whispered in the night. Orcs were beginning to stir and notice the fire.

_Have him hunt down two Elves that are traveling West. One of them has something. A gem of which its power I can sense. Command him to take the gem and kill the Elves._

"It will be done, Sauron the Great," the Mouth promised with his head bowed low.

_You must leave this place now and go to Mordor. The time to retake the land is almost upon us._

"Yes, my lord," the Mouth said. The fire then completely went out, plunging the Mouth and his minions back into darkness. The Mouth walked over to a large, heavy-set Man who stared down at the Mouth with glowing eyes. His armor was thick with a metal that had been produced in Mordor in the Second Age. It was specifically designed not just to deflect weapons such as swords and spears, but to protect the wearer from certain forms of magic.

"Find the gem. Bring it to Mordor once you have it. Kill all that stand in your way," the Mouth instructed. The Man growled in understanding and got on a waiting Warg. With a roar, the Warg rode him away from Weathertop, followed by a small group of Orcs.**

*_Meleth's eyesight drifts away into an unseen place as Tauriel cradles her_…

_Thranduil towers over Tauriel with the skin of his face parted to reveal skull underneath_…

_Tauriel watches the large Orc stab Kili_…

_Tauriel bends down to kiss Kili's lips as he lay dead in her arms_…

_The black gem pulses in her hands_, _whispering something that Tauriel couldn't understand_…

Tauriel suddenly sat up with eyes wide open. She could feel tear stains on her cheeks and her vision was fuzzy. She noticed she was breathing so hard it exhausted her

"Tauriel, what's wrong?" Barad asked next to her. He was being a lookout so that Tauriel could sleep. Sleep wasn't something that Tauriel was getting much of though.

"Nothing. Just a dream," Tauriel said.**

*Tauriel was passing through the Greenwood one last time. She wasn't close enough to Thranduil's kingdom, but she was okay with that. There was no going back.

"Tauriel, look around you," Barad said, gesturing to their surroundings. Tauriel got a good look and saw that the nature around them was beginning to heal. She saw green grass again and she heard the beautiful sound of birds chirping. If she wasn't coming back, she was glad to know that the forest was at least healing.

"But how?" Tauriel asked.

"Whatever was keeping the Greenwood in darkness had been banished. The king told me it was the Lady Galadriel herself that sent it away," Barad explained. His eyes hinted that he somehow knew something that Tauriel didn't, specifically about the nature of whatever darkness had covered the woods, but he didn't say anything more about it.

"Let's leave this place as quickly as we can," Barad said. Tauriel couldn't agree more. Maybe once they left, Tauriel won't have any more nightmares.

There was a part of her that still ached because of the loss of Kili. It was a loss that she knew she will never fully recover from.

It just so happened as they rode their horse through the woods that they happened upon the Pool of Illusion. Flashes of the violent final trial pierced Tauriel's memory. She could see her wrist cut open to the bone again, spilling blood on the grass.

As if she needed to check and make sure she wasn't bleeding, she pulled her sleeve down to look at the scar.

"What is it?" Barad asked from in front of her.

"It's nothing, it's…I got this scar during my final trial."

Barad stopped their horse and slid down. "Let me have a look."

Tauriel slid off the horse after him and showed him the ugly scar on her wrist.

"Did…did Thranduil scar you when you went through your final trial?" Tauriel asked.

Barad shook his head. "He felt that I had more than enough scars to have a new one."

That gave Tauriel something to think about as they moved on.**

*In Rhosgobel in the southwest borders of Greenwood, Tauriel and Barad took a break to eat lembas bread. It only took one bite for Tauriel to feel satisfied of course, but she didn't feel like continuing on just yet. She felt there were some things she needed to get off her chest first if she was going to be able to be focused well enough on the journey.

While sitting against a tree, she reached in her pocket and pulled out the rune stone that once belonged to Kili.

"What is that?" Barad asked.

"The dwarf Kili gave this to me. It was his. His mother gave it to him to remember his promise to return to her. After the dragon burned Lake-Town, he gave it to me before he left for the Lonely Mountain as a promise for me to keep."

"To return to him?" Barad guessed.

"Yes. Look at the runes. Do you know what they say?" Tauriel asked. She was at first reluctant to give the stone to Barad for closer examination, but she decided to trust him. Whatever had happened between them was being ignored for this journey. It had to be.

Barad took the stone and looked at it closely. Tauriel could see his lips moving to form soundless words as he studied it.

"Return to me?" Barad asked.

"You know what it says," Tauriel replied with a satisfied smile.

"I don't know every Dwarvish word there is to know, but I know _that _much," Barad said proudly. He handed the stone back to her so that she could slip it back in her pocket.

"Why do you keep it then?" Barad asked.

Honestly, Tauriel didn't know. She made that clear with her expression and Barad left it at that.**

*A rising tide of both excitement and fear embraced Tauriel as they got closer to the edge of the woods towards the great unknown beyond. Tauriel got off the horse while it was still trotting and turned her back on Barad. She longingly stared at the woods, watching the trees and the grass regain its color and grace. A tear broke out from her eye. When she looked back at Barad, he was already outside the woods looking back at her. Pity morphed in his expression and he got off the horse to come to her.

"Let me help you make the first step," Barad offered. He held out his hand for Tauriel to take. With her own trembling hand, she clasped it and allowed Barad to guide her out.

One foot went in front of the other.

As if the weather knew what Tauriel was doing, sunlight protruded out from between a thicket of clouds and lit up the ground around her foot.

"One more foot," Barad whispered.

Tauriel brought the other foot forward. She was standing outside the Greenwood. She was never going to see the woods where she grew up again.**

*Tauriel and Barad didn't even get a few feet away from the woods before someone called out to them. On their horse, Barad cringed.

"Wait now! Just wait a minute!" The voice yelled, getting louder as the person got closer.

"I don't remember ever inviting you, Radagast the Brown," Barad shouted without looking behind him. Tauriel craned her neck to see Radagast coming after them as quickly as he could.

"You know you'll need me," Radagast insisted. The wizard shifted his gaze to see Tauriel looking back at him.

"Tauriel," he said.

"Radagast," Tauriel replied in acknowledgement.

"Why should we let you come along?" Barad asked.

"Because I know how I can find Tom and Goldberry."

"We know where they are. In the Old Forest," Barad said.

"Ah, but do you know how to find them once you get there?" Radagast challenged.

"What do you mean?"

"Exactly what I said. I'm coming along whether you like it or not."

"There's only room for two on this horse, Radagast. If you feel like trying to catch up on foot, I'll be happy to let you try."

Radagast smirked and turned around as if to leave, but he stayed where he was. He then let out a long, graceful whistle that broke the silence around them. For a brief moment nothing happened, then from out of the woods came an empty sleigh pulled by rabbits.

Tauriel couldn't help but grin at the sight. It was so unusual, yet so fitting for the wizard. The sleigh came right beside Radagast to climb on.

"Now what was it you were saying about 'on foot'?" Radagast teased.

Tauriel couldn't help herself anymore. She laughed. The very sound of it made her pause and Barad look at her funny. When was the last time Tauriel had laughed? She couldn't remember. The thought of it made any delight she felt now fizz out.

"Do that more. I feel it will be very good for you," Barad commented.

"Let's go. If you're coming along, I suggest you travel fast."

"I will," Radagast promised.

So Tauriel, Barad, and Radagast left the Greenwood behind, and Tauriel felt the terror of traveling towards a fate she had no clue of. Somewhere deep in her temples was a throbbing pain that had been dwindling there for weeks now. Why she had it was unknown to her.**


	7. Chapter 7: All Her Fault

**AN: Well guys, only four more stories to go, with this being the first. It's all coming together now and is looking up to have a gripping and fantastic finale. Read on!**

A young child with pointed ears ran through a field of Mallos flowers. She had a huge grin on her face, completely living in the moment. She giggled as she almost stumbled over but managed to keep her footing and continue running. She was running towards a pair of arms that were spread out to embrace her once she got to them. The sun was shining down on the field with not a single cloud in the sky. It was so beautiful. So stunning…

A male voice sang once the young girl was in the pair of arms. The voice belonged to the person that held the girl.

_Hae ephadron_

_theri thaur_

_am na dhû_

_ias fîr i ambar_

_A trehil i 'alad 'lân uir tri 'wilith_

_I go walking_

_Beyond the forest_

_Where the world falls away_

_And the white light_

_Of forever fills the air_

*Tauriel woke up to the loud, intrusive sound of thunder tearing through the sky above her. She blinked several times. A tear rose in her eye.

For some reason, she wanted that dream to be real.

It was just a dream.

Tauriel sat up and shook her head as if she could shake the memory off that way. It had been almost a week since she, Barad, and Radagast left the Greenwood to set out for the Old Forest. Along the way, they stopped at Rivendell and stayed the night, but Elrond wasn't there. Apparently, he was escorting Galadriel to Lothlorien because she had been weakened during a battle against dark forces at Dol Guldur. While this was being explained to them, Barad's facial expression hinted that he might have known something about the place that Tauriel didn't know. Tauriel decided whatever he knew didn't matter now, because Galadriel was able to successfully banish the darkness from there. That was why the Greenwood was slowly being restored back to normal.

"Tauriel," Barad whispered next to her. Tauriel's eyes shot up open. She realized she had fallen asleep again. She turned her head to face Barad. Wet strands of black hair dangled down in front of his hazy eyes.

"We should be moving on. We should get to Bree before the last light of day," he softly urged. Tauriel nodded, feeling the muscles in her neck pop as she sat up again. The growing pain in her head snapped back to attention and continued its job of haunting her.

"Are you alright?" Barad asked.

"I'm fine. Let's go," Tauriel said, slowly getting back on her feet.

"Just one small problem."

"What?"

"Radagast is gone."

Tauriel looked around their camp. Sure enough, Radagast was nowhere to be seen, including his rabbit-pulled sleigh.

"Did you see him leave?" She asked.

"No. One moment he was there, and then the next moment he was gone," Barad replied.

"It was your turn to watch over the camp," Tauriel pointed out.

"I know. I don't know what came over me, I just…fell into a deep sleep," Barad complained, slightly shaking his head at himself.

"We cannot wait for him. Let's gather our things and keep going," Tauriel decided aloud.

"Why would Radagast come with us and then leave like that?" Barad asked. Tauriel sighed as she gathered up her bag.

"He's a wizard. We're not going to find the answers we seek. Come. We have to keep moving," Tauriel said. She didn't know exactly why, but a sense of urgency to get to the Old Forest as quickly as possible was growing in her more and more. What if she won't like what she finds out once she gets there?

There was only one way to find out.**

*The sun never came out the entire day. Tauriel was longing to go back to whatever place the dream showed her. She wondered if it was the fields of Lebennin that she saw. There was only one great field of Mallos flowers that she was familiar with.

Almost six hundred years ago, she made a promise to her dear friend Meleth that she will one day go to the fields. She feared that she will never fulfill that promise.**

*The sky was pouring buckets by the time Tauriel and Barad reached Bree. It was a fairly large village, with brick buildings that lined both sides of the cobblestone roads. Despite the heavy rain, people, both Men and Halflings alike, sat outside.

After being let in by the gatekeeper with their hoods drawn over their heads, Tauriel got a better look at the people. She had only ever seen one Halfling before, during the great battle at the Lonely Mountain, but now she saw dozens walking around. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a Man with a greasy wet beard taking a bite out of a carrot.

_Your scar is nothing compared to my own._

Tauriel shook her head and put two fingers to her temples. She can see Thranduil standing over her again, staring down at her with eyes like a wraith's.

"Tauriel?" Barad asked in front of her.

"I'm fine, let's go."

Barad and Tauriel rode to The Prancing Pony, the only inn in the vilage. The sign itself had a pony on it with the words 'The Prancing Pony'. Tauriel slid off the horse and her feet sank into several layers of wet mud. Shivering from the cold, she wrapped her cloak tighter around her to conserve body heat. Barad placed a gentle hand on her shoulder and escorted her through the door and into the inn.

Inside, the lights were dim but it was bright enough for Tauriel to see everything around her. Both Men and Halflings were sitting around tables, downing wine and ale and laughing. Smoke filled the air, threatening to close up Tauriel's throat. She coughed.

"Hey, look at this," a Man said from Tauriel's right. Tauriel looked to see a tall Man with long hair like Barad's stomp up to her with a toothy grin. He whistled.

"By my mother, I have not seen a woman this lovely since I was just a wee child," he bellowed. He reached down as if to smack Tauriel's rear, but was stopped by Barad, who pressed a dagger down on his wrist.

"Touch her with that, and you lose it," Barad hissed. A small drop of blood oozed and dripped off of the Man's arm. The Man took several steps back.

"Alright, alright, I didn't mean to start something. I just…"

"No, you did not. Now leave her alone," Barad demanded. The Man retreated back to his table without another word, nervously inhaling from his smoking pipe.

"You must not be so harsh on ol' Desmond there. The only woman that ever loved him was his mother," another voice said. Tauriel and Barad both turned to see a thinner man with a walking stick and thick, bushy eyebrows.

"You are Elves," the man said in astonishment.

"Yes. What is that to you?" Barad asked.

"I have never seen Elves in these parts. They tend to stay in their own lands and have nothing to do with the likes of us. However, time has its way of changing things. Strange business, time," the man pondered with a shrug.

"What is your name?" Barad asked.

"Sebastian."

"Radagast?" Barad asked. Radagast wasn't fooling anybody with that name. Sebastian was the name of one of the hedgehogs he took care of back at his home.

"In Bree, my name is Sebastian, and I would prefer it if you call me that here," Radagast said, sounding offended. Tauriel let loose a small amusing smile but her lips twitched when her headache rose a bit more. She felt along her forehead with the back of her hand.

"Tauriel, what is it?" Barad asked.

"Nothing. I should go out for some fresh air," Tauriel said.

"Let me go with you."

"No, thank you. I want to go out alone," Tauriel insisted. Barad frowned in concern.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. I will be back shortly." Tauriel then took leave of Barad and Radagast and briskly walked to the front door. The rain had begun to subside, and the clouds were breaking just a little bit. Just a little.

Tauriel found a small pathway between two buildings and leaned against the side of one of them. She took a deep breath, trying to veer her focus away from her headache, which just seemed to be getting worse and worse as time went on. Why was that?

Tauriel reached into her pocket and pulled out the black gem to look at again. Its eery black color seemed to move and reform like storm clouds. The tiniest pinch of white light could be seen in the dead center of the gem. Was this gem causing her to have these headaches? Why now after hundreds of years of holding onto it?

_I will not fall under the same fate as Meleth did. I will not be another one of its victims._

Her thoughts were cut off when a stone-hard fist smashed into her cheek, throwing her sideways off her feet. The gem fell out of her hands and bounced a short distance away. Tauriel looked up to see it stop and rest on the street.

"No!" Tauriel cried. She started to scramble to her feet to get it back, but two rough hands grabbed her by the shoulders and wrenched her up onto her feet. She felt herself get pinned to the wall of a building, her head cracking against the stone.

"Where do you think you're going, darling? We've only just gotten started," the man who had her in her grip hissed. The vision in Tauriel's eyes sharpened somewhat to reveal that the man was Desmond. His eyes were wild with desire and hate.

"Don't...please don't..." Tauriel begged with her eyes shut. She felt a cold, wet hand grip her collar and begin to slide its fingers underneath.

"Don't worry. I think you might find this pleasurable," Desmond said. Tauriel felt fear and desperation suddenly turn into an uncontrollable rage and disgust at the feeling of Desmond's fingers against her skin.

"I said...don't!" Tauriel screamed. Her voice was loud and echoed. She felt a powerful blast of energy unlike anything she had felt before explode out of her. Desmond screamed as he was tossed backwards. His body crashed through the wall of the building on the other side. Tauriel gasped in horror at what had just happened. She stared down at her hands, as if she was afraid that something terrible would jump out from them at her. She looked at Desmond again, who didn't sit up. She walked over to him and stared down at the long splinter of wood that jutted out from his stomach. Blood oozed and pooled on the floor beside him. Desmond coughed up blood and stared up at Tauriel with an overwhelming fear.

"Are you going to kill me?" He asked. He coughed one last time and gave his last breath.

Tauriel didn't need to proceed to killing Desmond then. She had already done it.

"No..." Tauriel whispered.

"Tauriel!" Barad's voice screamed from another world. Tauriel could hear her heartbeat over all the screams and chaos and confusion happening around her. She felt her body fall against Barad, who caught it before she could complete her fall.

"Barad..."

"Tauriel, it's alright."

"Barad, what did I just do?"

"Tauriel, do not talk."

"Hey! What just happened here?" Someone yelled.

When Tauriel dealt with the thief in Lake-Town by using her abilities long ago, she didn't kill him...

"_I want you to swear upon something."_

"_What is it_?"

"_Don't use your special abilities_."

Maybe Legolas was right about that, even though by obeying him she failed to save Kili.

"I didn't mean to...he attacked me...he..." Tauriel moaned between hot tears.

"Look at me. Look at me Tauriel," Barad urged. Tauriel felt Barad's rough hands turn her face around so that she was looking directly at his face. Amidst pounding in her head and the escalated sound of her heartbeat, she couldn't hear him. His lips moved, but she heard no sound. She could see some of the townspeople behind Barad trying to push their way to get at her. They were afraid of her. She was so powerful.

And yet, despite her terror and her fear rose an anger towards her parents, dead or not, that she had never felt about them before. Her mother was a fool to go against the Dark Lord. Because of her reckless actions, the gem was a curse now.

The gem. The gem! _The gem was not with her_!

"The gem? Where is the gem?" Tauriel begged through cracked lips.

"I have it. It's alright, it's safe with me. I can carry it for a while," Barad assured her.

"I can't let you do that. I can't let you get hurt! I can't..."

"Tauriel," Barad said, forcing her to look at him again, "trust me this time."

Tauriel nodded, knowing that she had no other choice. Barad was going to make sure that she was safe, and her holding onto the gem was probably not the best thing for her to do. Barad half-smiled and picked Tauriel up so that she was in his arms.

"We're leaving."

"She did this. _She did this_..." Tauriel groaned.

"Who?"

"My mother. It is all _her _fault."

"You will learn everything you need to know once you get to the Old Forest." Despite the fact that Barad had urged her to go on her journey, he didn't sound very confident in his words.

Dozens of townspeople followed Tauriel and Barad out of Bree, shouting at them the whole way to the gates to leave and never come back.

The thought that Tauriel was unaccepted by others in the world outside the Woodland Realm reinforced the pain. There was so much of it. She wanted it all to just end.

Radagast, still in his form as Sebastian, tagged along with them, apologizing over and over again to the crowds for what happened. Tauriel believed that she was the one that needed to apologize over and over. It was all her fault.

** AN: Next up, Tauriel meets Tom Bombadil and Goldberry! The finale is soon guys, really soon!**


	8. Chapter 8: The Truth Hurts

**AN: I present to you what is quite possibly the longest chapter I've written in this series. There's a lot of payoff to be found here so I hope you enjoy it! As a side-note, I'm wondering if you guys spotted the Doctor Who reference in the last story. If you guys know what that was, please tell me in your review! Anyway, moving on!**

*The Old Forest. They made it. After just under two days since they left Bree, Tauriel, Barad, and Radagast found themselves standing right outside the borders of the Old Forest. In some ways, it didn't look any different from the Greenwood, but it still appeared gloomy. Not as gloomy as the Greenwood looked for a while while it was under a poisonous darknesss. It just looked unpleasant.

"This is it," Barad said. He looked at Tauriel with a half-smile, hoping to draw a little bit of enthusiasm from her. She hadn't spoken more than five words since they left Bree. On multiple occasions, he had caught her staring down at her hands as if she was afraid of them. He had told her over and over again that it wasn't her fault.

"The man attacked you. There was nothing else you were able to do," Barad had told her once they got far enough away from Bree to make the townspeople feel at ease.

"I let out too much," Tauriel replied while she had her arms around her legs.

"You were scared. It's what anyone with that power would have done."

Tauriel didn't answer. Deciding that he couldn't do much else at the moment, Barad motioned to her to keep going and keep up with him.

"You want to know the truth do you not?" Barad had asked. Tauriel only nodded in reply, but she looked so unsure.

Now they were standing right outside the forest. The wind whipped Barad's hair around, getting in front of his eyes too.

"I will be right behind you," Barad promised.

But Tauriel shook her head. "No."

"What?"

"I must go alone. I must meet with Tom Bombadil and Goldberry by myself," Tauriel insisted.

"But we don't know what else is in that forest. You may need my help," Barad pointed out. Tauriel reached into her pocket, and pulled from it the runestone with the Dwarvish runes carved on it that said 'return to me'. She turned around, took Barad's hand, and put the stone in it.

"Keep it. As a promise," Tauriel said. Barad stared down at the stone through tear-filled eyes. One tear fell and splashed on the stone.

"I promise," Barad said. He meant every word. He will see her again, under less urgent circumstances. He hoped. But he didn't know what was coming. Tauriel let loose a small gasp and she put a hand on her stomach.

"What? What is it?" Barad asked. Tauriel looked up at him with tears of her own falling down her cheeks, but they weren't tears of grief. They were tears of joy.

"I am with child," Tauriel announced. Everything inside Barad then shut down. All thoughts and feelings escaped from him, leaving him feeling hollow. His jaw dropped and his eyes widened in shock.

"That's not possible. Who…who did this?"

"Ah yes," Radagast cut in, "you see, I might have cast a spell on her because she's meant to have a child."

"A touch of his staff when I was asleep," Tauriel added.

"But why?"

"Her child will bear the gem one day. Tauriel is meant to pass it along," Radagast explained.

Tauriel looked at Barad again with a confident smile. "I must go and learn everything. I will return."

Barad and Tauriel wrapped their arms around each other in a tight embrace. Tears escaped from both their eyes.

_Kili_. _Meleth_. _Niniel_. _Legolas_. _Barad_.

Though just about all of them had passed from her life, they had all brought Tauriel to this point. One day, she would pass into the West and be reunited with all of them. Hopefully Kili too. If the Valor wanted to, they could allow Kili in if they felt he deserved it.

Tauriel felt like he deserved to be there.

Finally, Tauriel let go of Barad and turned away. With her hand in her pocket to hold onto the black gem, she stepped foot into the Old Forest and transported herself into the unknown.

In the Old Forest, it was gloomier than Tauriel saw outside. She found herself staring at the sticky dark moss growing on the trees. The patches of grass were a mixture of natural green and poisonous-looking darkness. Some things were the same beyond the Woodland Realm she guessed.

She didn't expect to find a perfect world full of beauty and wonder and bliss outside the Woodland Realm, but it saddened her to see that more of it was covered in darkness then she had expected.

She became so lost in her thoughts she almost forgot why she was here. She was here to find Tom and Goldberry. What will they tell her?

As she traveled deeper into the forest, her eyelids began to feel heavy. She could feel herself nodding off, but she couldn't understand why. Was this forest enchanted somehow? She could feel her feet begin to fail her. She stumbled and fell to her knees.

What are you doing? Get back up you fool, get back up! You're almost there.

The throbbing pain in her head mocked her and looked down on her with no remorse. It was beating her. She could feel the gem progressively sagging in her pocket, as if its weight was increasing. When Tauriel fell forward, the gem fell out of her pocket and rolled to the side of her head.

The desire to sleep was overwhelming now. She could feel herself drifting off.

_No no no!_

Not now. Not when she was so close. Please…

Before she could finish her thought, sleep finally took her away from the world.

_Tauriel couldn't move or say anything in her dream_. _She could only witness what was happening in front of her_. _She saw Legolas bending down so that his eyes were level with the eyes of a human boy_. _The boy's eyes were an entrancing blue_, _and he had thick coal-black hair_. _Even though he appeared to be no more than ten years old_, _there was something so deep and so rich Tauriel could see in those eyes_.

"_What is your name_?" _Legolas asked the boy_.

"_I am Aragorn_. _Son of Arathorn_," _the boy replied_.

"_My father told me about you_. _Do you come from Rivendell_?" _Legolas asked._

"_Yes_. _Elrond raises me_," _the boy responded._ _Legolas gazed down at the ground in thought_. _He was probably wondering what to do now_. _He had found the person he was sent by his father to find_. _Now what_?

Tauriel opened her eyes while she was wondering in her sleep. She gripped the ground underneath her, then realized how soft the ground was. Puzzled, she looked around her and realized she wasn't in the middle of the Old Forest anymore. She was inside someone's home.

None of her usual warning cymbals went off in her head because there was something about this place that was different. There was no feeling of any hostility around her whatsoever. In fact, the place made her feel at peace. Maybe a little too at peace. In a way it made her feel uncomfortable, she couldn't help it.

"Well good morning, good morning," someone said. Tauriel sat up on the bed she was on and saw a short, plump man wearing a straw hat. He had a large, brown beard with not a single strand of gray hair to be seen. He wore a blue jacket and had blue eyes that seemed to sparkle.

"Tom has been waiting so long for you to awaken. Tom was beginning to wonder if you ever would, but you have now so get up and have some breakfast," the man said with a cheerful tone. Despite how cheerful he sounded however, there was the slightest hint of sadness in his voice.

"Tom Bombadil?" Tauriel asked.

"I am. Now come on, hurry before it gets cold," Tom urged. Before Tauriel could ask another question, Tom turned around and bustled into the other room.

Strange. Tauriel looked behind her at the window by her bed. She could see a green, lush field outside, lit up by the sun's light. Everything looked so beautiful, unlike the rest of the forest. From the other room, Tauriel could hear Tom singing to himself.

_Old Tom Bombadil is a merry fellow;_

_Bright blue his jacket is, and his boots are yellow._

Tauriel wasn't sure if she should feel comfortable being with a man that seemed so cheerful and upbeat or nervous. After all, another man had just recently attempted to rape her and she killed the man. She didn't want any more human blood on her hands than she already had.

"Come, young Elf, come! Breakfast waits for you, come!" Tom sang. Tauriel couldn't help but smile and she finally gave in. The smell was empowering and she realized how hungry she actually was. She wondered how long she had been asleep. She wondered how Barad was feeling right now. Was he worried that she wasn't coming back.

She made a promise to him. She will return to him.

Tauriel stepped into the dining area and was stunned at the sight of the food on the wooden table. The fireplace against the wall was crackling, making the air feel just right. In other words, the place felt like a true home.

There was a stack of white bread on one plate, each scraped with yellow cream and honey. Milk, cheese, green herbs, and ripe berries were gathered in one place too. It was all a combination that Tauriel had never seen before. Sure vegetables and green herbs were things that the Wood-Elves valued, but the white bread, the cheese, and the milk were things that Tauriel had never gotten to even taste before.

She then realized something.

"Where's your wife Goldberry?" Tauriel asked.

"The River-daughter is out by the Withywindle River. She will return soon, but first we eat," Tom said. Though he tried his hardest to look like nothing was wrong, Tauriel could see the uncertainty in his eyes.

"I have to speak to her. To both of you," Tauriel said. Tom sat down across from Tauriel and began gathering things and piling them on a plate.

"You can always speak to Tom, Tom always listens. Some cheese perhaps?" Tom said, gesturing to the cheese. Tauriel reluctantly took a chunk and bit into it. It was good. Unlike anything that she had tasted before. She wondered if Kili ever ate cheese.

"I'm here to learn about what happened to my parents. I was told that you would know," Tauriel said.

"And your name is, may I ask?" Tom asked.

"Tauriel."

"And you want to know what happened to your parents?"

"Yes, please," Tauriel said, with an edge of urgency that she couldn't help but have.

"You don't need to search any further. Tom knows this."

Tauriel leaned forward with pleading eyes. "What do you know?"

"I am your father, Tauriel. The River-daughter Goldberry, my love, is your mother," Tom replied.

The cheese inside Tauriel's stomach shifted. Her entire body produced a sheet of sweat that glistened on her forehead. The warmth of the house she felt a moment ago then escalated to a furnace level, though she knew that was just her.

"How…?"

"How is this possible? It just is, my dear," Tom admitted, shrugging as though it made little difference.

"But how…? Then who were those people that raised me until I was taken into the Woodland Realm?" Tauriel asked.

"Adarlae and Itaril were your caretakers. We gave them you and your brother Alagos because we wanted you out there in the world, where you can make a difference." Tom leaned forward so that his eyes were at the same level as Tauriel's. "We were hoping you would find the gem."

"King Thranduil told me that my mother created it," Tauriel pointed out.

"Yes, yes, Tom knows this. She created it to challenge the Dark Lord long ago, but she failed and the gem was taken from her. She fell and hid herself underneath the Withywindle River, until Tom came along and found her while gathering water-lilies."

Tom sat back and heaved a great sigh that revealed new wrinkles on his face. He obviously wasn't enjoying himself by telling Tauriel these things.

"After having your mother for a while, Tom and Goldberry decided we wanted to have children, hoping that perhaps one of them might find the gem after the Dark Lord fell. So the Valar gave us a choice. We could have children, but they would have to represent a different race to protect the truth of your heritage from Sauron. To honor the passing of the River-daughter's dear friend Faenith from long ago, we chose for you and your brother to be Silvan Elves."

Now it was Tauriel's turn to sit back and think over this. It made sense. So that was how she had her special abilities that few other Elves had, because she was the daughter of a Maia family.

She looked down at her green dress deep in thought. "You mentioned my 'brother'. Who is he?"

"Tom told you, his name is Alagos. Surely you should remember."

Alagos. That did sound familiar, but why couldn't she remember him? She tried to. She knew she had seen him before, but she couldn't quite place exactly how or when.

"May I go see my mother?" Tauriel asked. Tom rubbed a fresh berry between his fingers in thought.

"Go. You two have a lot to talk about I'm sure," he finally replied.**

*The sky was completely overcast, with no sign of the sun at all. A cold wind whispered through Tauriel's ears and she shivered. The water from the Withywindle River made its splashing sound as the winds blew the current. Under the cloud-infested sky, the water had a gloomy gray color. Even the green grass surrounding Tauriel seemed to lose a little bit of its color.

Standing in front of the Withywindle River with her back turned to Tauriel was Goldberry. She had long golden hair that flowed beautifully in the wind and she wore a green dress that spilled out around her feet forming a circle of emerald.

The anger Tauriel had felt towards her mother back at Bree resurfaced again. "Why did you do it?"

Goldberry didn't answer. She didn't even so much as flinch.

"Mother," Tauriel snapped. Goldberry finally turned around to face her, revealing green eyes that matched her dress. They exposed a naked sadness that ran deeper than the River.

"Why did you do it? How did you think that you would be able to stop the Dark Lord by yourself?" Tauriel demanded amidst hot tears. Goldberry's chin ever so slightly dipped, revealing shame that Tauriel wanted her to feel. Good, this was good.

"Meleth is dead because she was affected by the gem. Her father went mad and I had to kill him. I have reason to believe that the gem had something to do with the Woodland Realm being poisoned by darkness."

A hint of a tear grew in Goldberry's eye.

"All of this happened…because you wanted to face the Dark Lord," Tauriel said. Her lips trembled under the weight of grief and anger she felt.

"You were a fool," Tauriel declared.

Goldberry didn't answer her. She continued to stare at her daughter with eyes that looked like were digging through her flesh and getting insight into her soul.

"Will you not answer me?" Tauriel asked, now sounding fully grieved instead of angry.

Goldberry raised her hand at Tauriel and something leaped out and caught Tauriel in the throat. Tauriel's head snapped up so she was staring up at the sky. With a cry, she was swallowed up in a blinding white light.

When she opened her eyes, she found herself standing in the middle of a field, but everything around her was dead. The sky heralded a terrible storm. Lightning flashed and small droplets of rain fell around Tauriel. The grass beneath her was black and lied flat. She felt rain ooze down her arms and soak her dress.

"Mother? _Mother_?" Tauriel cried out.

"Tauriel," a voice replied. It wasn't Goldberry. Tauriel looked in the direction where the voice came from and saw a male Elf staring back at her. He carried a walking stick in his hand and his leg was patched up.

"Who are you?" Tauriel demanded, reaching for her dagger. She stopped short when she realized it wasn't there.

"Do not be afraid. It's Alagos," the Elf replied. Was this some black arts? Was all of this that Tauriel was in truly real?

"Alagos?"

"You don't remember me? That makes sense. The gem must have chipped away at your memory of me because I got trapped in it."

"Where are we?" Tauriel asked.

Alagos half-smiled. "We're inside the black gem."

Tauriel surveyed her surroundings again. The dead field appeared to stretch on for an eternity. She was inside the black gem? That couldn't be possible.

Unless…

"Our mother put your spirit inside the black gem, just like my spirit was placed in here as a curse when Anton separated my soul and body from each other," Alagos explained.

"What am I supposed to do here?" Tauriel asked.

"We have to purify the gem. Once that's done, the Dark Lord Sauron will lose his connection to it. We have to stomp out the darkness that Morgoth poisoned it with so that Sauron cannot keep himself connected."

"How? How do we do it?" Tauriel asked.

"We are both from Maiar heritage, but each of us individually do not have the full power of our parents. We need to use what power we have together to destroy the darkness and purify the gem once and for all," Alagos explained.

"To do it though, means tapping into some unwanted memories," Alagos finished with a grim expression. Tauriel reached out and took Alagos' hand. Instantly, her memories of Alagos came rushing back to her. She remembered how he found her in the Greenwood and took her to live in the Woodland Realm. She remembered him training her for a while before he left for reasons he never explained and never came back. She understood now. Alagos was her brother, and Barad and Niniel were his children.

"Now keep holding onto my hand, and we concentrate together. You will know what words you must say," Alagos said. Tauriel nodded in understanding, determined now to finish her task. Whatever she felt towards her mother subsided as her priorities were rearranged.

"Ready?" Alagos asked. Tauriel nodded again and shut her eyes, her hand in Alagos' hand.

At first, she saw nothing but darkness. Then, there was a light. She found herself holding Meleth in her arms again. Saw the dying light in Meleth's eyes yet again as her spirit drifted away. She found herself fighting Meleth's father Dae again, before using her power combined with one of Legolas' arrows to take him out. She found herself using her abilities against Barad in training matches. She found herself looking down at the black gem in her hands as she tried to make sure that Legolas didn't see her.

She could hear the evil whispers emanating from the gem, fueling her with fear and anxiety.

Darkness. The gem was infected. She should've never held onto it all that time. She wished the gem had never come to her.

She knew however that that wasn't her choice. It came to her. She was meant to have it, and it all came down to this very moment.

She channeled her hate towards not the gem, but the darkness that was sealed within, blocking out its starlight. With the hate, came the light from her desire to restore the gem and bring the starlight back out.

Then, without even thinking about what she was doing, she chanted with Alagos.

_I go walking_

_Beyond the forest_

_Where the world falls away_

_And the white light_

_Of forever fills the air_

When Tauriel and Alagos chanted the words, they spoke in the ancient Quendian language. It was the first original language of the Elves.

"Again," Alagos said. They chanted the words again, this time singing the words more than simply chanting them.

As Tauriel and Alagos finished chanting the second time, the ground beneath them began to tremble and shake. Tauriel could feel large amounts of power explode from her and cover the land around her. Her hands vibrated and her heart beat so fast she couldn't count. She managed to stay her ground, keeping her feet firmly planted where they were. An intense warmth streamed from Alagos' hand to Tauriel's.

"Open your eyes, Tauriel," Alagos called out. Tauriel opened her eyes, and found that her surrounding were completely different now. Above her was a night sky, filled with stars. It bathed the now-healthy ground beneath her in beautiful starlight unlike anything Tauriel has witnessed before.

"Your mother will know that you and I purified the gem. She will release your spirit from it soon now," Alagos said.

"What about you?" Tauriel asked.

"I am already dead. I will be released from the gem too, and pass on into the halls of Mandos," Alagos replied.

Overwhelmed with emotion, Tauriel threw her arms around Alagos and rested her face in his shoulder.

"Thank you. Thank you for saving me long ago," Tauriel said.

"I wish I was able to do more."

"You did enough."

Tauriel thought for a second and realized something. "Your son Barad is with me."

"Tell him I am sorry for everything. I do not expect him to forgive me, but I want him to know how I feel," Alagos said.

"I will tell him. I promise."

"Goodbye, sister."

"Goodbye, brother."

Alagos' spirit then began to fade away in front of Tauriel's eyes, wrenching tears from her ducts. Not a second went by after Alagos completely vanished when Tauriel's own spirit faded away from the field.

Tauriel opened her eyes and stared up at the overcast sky. Seeing it after seeing the beautiful starry sky caused Tauriel to feel gloomy. She was lying on the floor in the wet grass. When she sat up, she saw her mother. She was holding the gem.

There was no sign of blackness on it now. It was a complete, pure white gem.

Tauriel smirked when she thought that it was something Thranduil would kill for.

A headache worse than what she had before came crashing down upon her and she blacked out.**

**AN: Tauriel is not completely safe yet, nor has she done everything she needs to do.**


	9. Chapter 9: All He Is Now

**AN: Just two more stories to go! Get ready for the feels!**

*The deed was done. The black gem was now pure, but Tauriel didn't feel completely satisfied. When she woke up after blacking out, she found herself back on the bed in Tom Bombadil's home. Her _father's _home to be more accurate.

"Hello? Father? Mother?" Tauriel called out. The door to her room opened, revealing Barad.

"Tauriel," he said. He walked over to Tauriel's side and sat down, looking down at her with sympathetic eyes.

"You will be alright," Barad said. Tauriel felt hot tears well up in her eyes. She sat up and hugged Barad, pressing her face against his shoulder to cry into it.

"It's alright. It's alright," Barad said again and again. It was all he was able to do to comfort her.**

*After a half-hearted breakfast, Tauriel was back outside the home of Tom Bombadil and Goldberry, staring at the forest that stretched out before her. Her father Tom stood with her to say goodbye, but her mother wasn't there. All she did for her after Tauriel woke up was give her back the gem, now white and pure. Tauriel's headaches were gone, having been healed away by Goldberry when she was out cold.

Tauriel knew that it was her responsibility to keep the gem. It will one day be given to her child. Goldberry refused to keep it because it was a constant reminder of what had transpired long ago, and she deemed herself unworthy to have it.

"I don't suppose you'll let Tom take a look at it just one more time?" Tom asked Tauriel. Tauriel stared back at her father. She had no real reason to feel distaste towards her father. Her mother was a lucky woman to get picked up and cared for by this man, or whatever he truly was. It was more than she deserved.

Tauriel removed the gem from her pocket and showed it to her father, who looked down at it with unfazed eyes, looking as though it didn't affect him at all.

"You deserve to hold onto it," Tom said. "Go now, my daughter. Leave in peace."

Tauriel bowed and walked away from her father for the last time. Her mother had never once said a word to her. Maybe that was for the best.**

*"Where are you going now?" Barad asked once they were out of the Old Forest. Radagast had already left to return to his home in the Greenwood. His job was to see to it that Tauriel got to the Old Forest safely and that she would have the child.

Tauriel felt the part of her stomach where the child was beginning to grow. She smiled at the idea that she probably won't be fit to fight for a while because of her pregnancy. It was a funny thought considering that she was an otherwise capable fighter.

But Barad made a point. What was she to do now? Where was she going to go? Not back to the Woodland Realm. She knew her place wasn't there anymore. Neither was Legolas's.

_I saw a fire-moon once. It rose over the pass near Dunland._

Tauriel stiffened. Kili's words snaked around her mind and there was no letting go. She knew what she wanted to do.

_We took the Greenway south_. _Keeping to the mountain on our left_. _Then_, _it appeared_.

But will Tauriel really find what she wanted to find once she got there?

Tauriel wrenched herself out of her thoughts. "We're going to Dunland," she finally announced.

"Dunland?"

"There's something I want to see. A fire-moon over the Pass near Dunland," Tauriel explained.**

*The Man that was sent to find Tauriel and Barad was known only as the Hunter. He was one of the few that managed to flee the Greenwood hundreds of years ago during the great battle between the Wood-Elves and Anton's followers. To this day, he can't remember his true name. It had been lost on him some time after he pledged his allegiance to Anton, therefor pledging his allegiance to the One. To the Dark Lord who was destined to rule over the free peoples of Middle-Earth once again.

The Hunter had followed Tauriel and Barad to the Anca Woods in Rohan, not far from Dunland. After three weeks, the Hunter was finally getting closer. He just had to make sure to follow them somewhere where they would be at a disadvantage and no one that can help them would be close by.

The Warg he was riding on bent down to sniff the path in front of him. The Warg was picking up a scent.

The Hunter raised his hand to signal the Orcs behind him to halt. The Orcs stopped. Everything was deathly silent for a moment until the Warg finally looked up and growled.

The Hunter slid off his Warg and bent down himself to take a look. He can make out boot tracks in the dirt. The tracks were fresh.

"They are not far. Meat is back on the menu boys," the Hunter declared. The Orcs raised their swords and took up a victory cry as if they had already won. They were unaware however of another Elf watching them from a distance with his sword already out.**

*The Elf found the right moment to leap out and engage the Orcs. With his long sword, he stabbed the blade through the throat of an Orc on his Warg, then completely decapitated the Warg. Two Orcs slid off their Wargs to attack the Elf, but they slid on the blood of the decapitated Warg, frantically waving their arms in the air. The Elf pulled an arrow from the quiver he had on his back and thrust it through the neck of one of the Orcs, then quickly disposed of the other Orc with a swipe of his sword up its torso.

Another Orc attempted to attack the Elf from behind, but the Elf twirled his sword and stabbed backwards, impaling the Orc completely through and through. One of the Wargs leaped after the Elf, but he rolled out of the way and scrambled back onto his feet. When the Warg charged after him, he managed to sidestep and hack his sword down in the middle of its body, chopping it in half. The Warg let loose a bloody whimper before falling silent.

Three more Orcs came after the Elf from different directions, forcing him to parry each move, making sure to face every Orc every second. After taking turns with each Orc parrying their moves, the Elf beheaded one of them with a brisk swing across the neck. The Elf caught the Orc's head with his foot and stabbed the tip of his sword through it, then spun around, bashing another Orc with the head on his sword. With a splintering crack of bone, the Orc fell limp onto its side. With a frustrated cry, the Elf swung his sword over his shoulder so that the decapitated head crashed on top of the last Orc. Several teeth spilled out of the Orc's mouth and he fell forward with a horrible gash in his head.

The Elf looked around, surveying the mess. There was no sign of the Man he saw. He and his Warg had fled the scene. Spotting the Warg tracks, he ran down the path to follow them.**

*Tauriel's ears pricked up when she heard the footsteps. They weren't just any ordinary footsteps. Some creature was nearby, and it was heading in her direction. Tauriel's hand strayed to the dagger in her sheath. She had to be ready for whatever was coming.

"I hear it too," Barad said beside her. He reached for his own sword.

"For this, stay back. You're not in any condition to fight," Barad ordered. Tauriel felt the larger lump in her belly. She knew Barad was right, but she still hated the fact that she couldn't fight. There was a time when she was capable enough to fight.

The creature's footsteps were sounding much closer now, filling Tauriel with dread that grew stronger the closer the creature got.

"It's a Warg. And someone is riding on it," Barad said. He clasped Tauriel's shoulder.

"Go. You must get out of here. If I do not return to you soon, go on to the Pass without me."

Tauriel wanted to argue, but she knew it wasn't wise. She hated what Barad was telling her, but she knew he was right. She had to choose the safety of her child over Barad.

"Please return to me," Tauriel said before she ran away. Barad watched after her with misting eyes. Barad twirled the sword in his hand to get the feel of it back to him. The Warg with its rider finally came leaping out from between two trees on a hill to the side of the path. Barad rolled to the side and the Warg landed right where he had been standing just seconds ago.

Riding the Warg was a Man, dressed in heavy battle armor with a helmet that only showed off his eyes. They were tight and piercing, looking like they were digging into Barad's soul.

"There are two of you. Where is the other one?" The Hunter demanded. Barad twirled his sword again as if that would intimidate his foe.

"You will face me. I am the only one here now," he said.**

*Tauriel looked back over her shoulder dozens of times as she ran. She could feel her boots stepping on her green dress.

When she turned to face the path in front of her again, she froze in her tracks. Someone was standing in her way. She couldn't believe who it was.

It was Thranduil.

"My lord? But how can this be?" Tauriel asked. Thranduil took several steps towards her, making Tauriel nervous enough to take a step back.

"I want to make this easy, Tauriel. I only want one thing," Thranduil said.

"What is it?"

"I want the gem. Give it to me."**

*Barad leaped out of the way of the Warg again, making sure to roll and then gain his footing again.

"You are only prolonging your death for a little while longer. Make this easy and die," the Hunter taunted. Barad raised his sword with both hands and decided it was his turn to charge.

"No!" He screamed. He ran up towards the Warg and leaped.**

*"Why would I give you the gem?" Tauriel asked.

"It was purified. You purified it, yes?" Thranduil replied.

"Yes. Alagos and me both," Tauriel said.

"Show it to me."

Tauriel hesitated. She fidgeted and took another step back. Thranduil advanced another step towards her.

"Tauriel. Show it to me," Thranduil demanded.

What was going on? What was Thranduil thinking? Had he gone mad? What sort of madness was this?

Thranduil took another step. "Tauriel."

Tauriel reached into her pocket and opened up her hand to show off the gem, pure white and glowing in her hand. The light reflected off of the king's greedy eyes. His jaw slid agape at the sight. He began to take more steps, and he reached out a trembling hand to take it.

Tauriel shut up her palm to guard the gem from the mad king. "No, stay away from it."

Thranduil's expression changed. It was the same one he had when Tauriel told him that there was no love in him.

Then his sword flashed and whistled in the air and Tauriel's severed hand, still clasping the gem, fell to the ground. Blood fell and pelted the grass down.

Tauriel screamed.**

*Barad's feet landed on the bridge of the Warg's nose and leaped again, tackling the Hunter off of the Warg. They both fell. They hit the ground and screamed when fresh new cuts opened up. Barad hollered in pain but got himself back onto his feet just as the Hunter found his feet too. Then Barad heard Tauriel's screams. The Hunter did too.

"Well now, I wonder who that is? Perhaps it is your friend who has the gem," the Hunter guessed. Barad lashed out at the Hunter with his sword, who parried the move with his own mace. The two of them attempted to strike each other in the torso, the knees, and the neck. Barad felt his fear for Tauriel swell up like a balloon in him. He felt helpless. He couldn't help her because he had to destroy the Hunter.

The Hunter swung his mace up in a clean, upward arc, and Barad's sword flew out of his hand.**

*Tauriel was on her knees, clutching the stump where her hand used to be. It was on the arm where she had been given the scars by Thranduil.

"Why are you doing this? I thought you loved me. I forgave you," Tauriel wept. Thranduil leaned bent down so that he can put the flat of his blade right underneath Tauriel's chin.

"Remember when you told me there is no love in me? Whatever love was left was driven out by you, and your mother as well. Your mother led my sister to her doom, and you made my son leave me. The gem is mine. Neither you or your mother deserve to have it."

Tears fell from Tauriel's eyes and splashed on Thranduil's blade.

"I know you will not give it to me willingly. That's why I waited until now for this moment," Thranduil said. Tauriel stared up into the king's eyes. The eyes of the one who had accepted her into his kingdom long ago. The one who gave her the role of Captain of the Woodland Guard. Did any of that even matter to him now? Tauriel couldn't even find a hint of the king she once knew in his eyes. He was long gone. There was nothing but hatred in those eyes now. She had been right all along about him.

There was no love in him. Whether or not that was really her fault or her mother's fault didn't matter right now.

"I wanted you to leave me. I knew that you would eventually find a way to purify the gem. The Lady Galadriel told me you would one day, and once the deed was done, my plan was to find you and take it from you, because it would then be safe to have it. You did exactly what I wanted you to do," Thranduil explained.

Thranduil bent down beside her and uncurled the fingers on her severed hand to expose the gem. He picked it up.

"My lord, don't! Please, I beg you, don't!" Tauriel cried. Thranduil pocketed the gem without hesitation.

Tauriel struggled back onto her feet and unsheathed her dagger. She swung away at the king, knowing full well that anything she did to try to hurt the king won't work.

"I defeated you in the trial! I'm better than you! I am more powerful than you!" Tauriel screamed. Thranduil was slightly overwhelmed by Tauriel's swings because of how clumsy and wild they were. However he saw the opening he needed and slashed his sword across Tauriel's side. Blood spilled down the side of her dress.

Tauriel fell again, onto her side where she had been cut. Pain screamed through her entire body and her head pounded so hard she can hear her heartbeat in her ears.

"Goodbye, Tauriel," Thranduil said. Tauriel watched the king return his sword to his sheath and walk away from her.

So this was it. This was Thranduil's revenge against her family for what happened to his sister. His lust for revenge and his lust for gems had come full circle.**

*The force of the Hunter's upward swing also pushed Barad off his feet. The Hunter stood over Barad and raised his mace over his head to bring it down on the Elf.

Barad rolled to the side when the Hunter brought the mace down. The mace hit the ground so hard it became embedded in it. While Barad was distracted, the Warg saw an opportunity to attack him. It charged and almost got to Barad to throw him away with its head, but Barad heard it coming and spun around. He leveled his sword at the Warg's head, and stabbed forward. The tip of the blade sank between its eyes. With a pathetic whimper, the Warg fell onto its side.

When the Hunter finally got to pull the mace out of the ground, he stumbled from the force it took to pull it out, giving Barad the opportunity he needed. He twirled around and slashed his blade across the one unprotected part of the Hunter's body, which was the neck. The Hunter fell headless to the ground.

Without allowing even a second to catch his breath, Barad ran to find Tauriel.**

*Barad found Tauriel lying on her side. Her eyes were fixed on the stump on her arm where her hand used to be. A horrific sense of dread came crashing down on Barad.

"What—who did this to you?" He urged, bending down to help Tauriel.

"It was—Thranduil…"

"Thranduil? The king did this to you?" Barad asked.

"Do not hate him Barad. He is blinded by his greed and his hate. It's all he is now," Tauriel said.

"I'll go find him and kill him," Barad vowed.

"No. Don't. I need to get to—to the Pass."

Barad slightly lifted Tauriel and gagged at the sight of the deep cut in her side.

"You're bleeding all over the place. I have nothing to heal you. Can you heal yourself?" Barad asked.

"I cannot. Whatever darkness the gem was able to leave behind in me after it was made pure is preventing me from succeeding," Tauriel explained.

Tears rose in Barad's eyes. "What am I supposed to do?"

"We have to get to the Pass. That is all I want," Tauriel said.

"But you're too weak to stand."

Tauriel gazed up at Barad with an idea in her eyes that Barad was already thinking about.

"I will carry you if I must," Barad said. Tearing off several pieces of his robe, Barad patched up Tauriel's wounds as best he could, though he didn't know how much help it would be. Some blood was still oozing out from between the broken skin and the pieces of robe.

Barad carefully lifted Tauriel up off the ground. Her face was pale like a white sheet.

"What of the gem?" Barad asked.

"The gem is gone."**

**AN: The final story will be out shortly. I want to make sure that it will be written really well and make sure it gives the series justice. Thanks guys for reading this far! I promise it will be worth it in the end.**


	10. Chapter 10: Truly Feeling At Home

**AN: Well guys, this is it. The final story in ****_The Silvan Elf_****. It has been quite a ride to get here, and I have a couple people to thank for this incredible journey. I know you want to read this story really badly, so I'll leave the Acknowledgements at the bottom. Now, it's time for the conclusion.**

_ *It was a dream_. _In the dream, Tauriel had her severed hand back_. _The scars on her wrist weren't there_, _and she can feel herself floating_. _She heard laughter_. _Pleasant, cheerful laughter_. _What was this place? She couldn't come up with a good description in her head_. _Everything around her was…unexplainable_. _She can see white shores_. _She can hear the rush of clean, calm waters that moved in the tide_. _This couldn't be Middle-Earth_. _She felt more at peace then she has ever felt before_…**

*"Tauriel."

Tauriel's eyes shot up open and she saw Barad staring down at her in concern.

"We are here," he announced. Tauriel blinked and realized she was lying on the ground. She tried to sit up, but a jarring pain in her belly kept her down.

"No, don't move. I think it's coming," Barad said.

"I have to see it—I have to see it, Barad," Tauriel begged.

"You will. You will, just let me move you," Barad urged. Tauriel allowed him to carry her and place her against one of the only trees standing in the foothill region.

"This place fronts the western slopes of the Misty Mountains," Barad explained. He pointed to the Misty Mountains lying ahead of them. "You can see them."

Despite the pain, Tauriel smiled. It was beautiful.

"Just where I want to be," Tauriel said. Her smile transformed into a gasp from a cutting pain in her side.

"Tauriel!" Barad cried out. With trembling fingers, he took hold of the piece of robe that was stuck to her skin and peeled back just a little to look at the damage. Tauriel watched his expression contort into one of disgust at the sight of her wound.

"I think the cut broke something inside," Tauriel commented.

"If we move further, we can find people who can…"

"No. Barad, I have to deliver the child. I have to see the fire-moon. Please," Tauriel begged.

"Tauriel, why are you willing to let your life go like this?" Barad cried.

"Because my work is almost done," Tauriel said. Then, she began to sing. It was the song that she sang with Alagos when they were inside the gem.

_I go walking_

_Beyond the forest_

_Where the world falls away_

_And the white light_

_Of forever fills the air_

Tauriel gasped in pain again, and she felt the child within her kicking and struggling.

"Barad…" Tauriel choked. Barad immediately bent down in front of Tauriel and got himself ready to help her. Tauriel got to work on pushing, shutting her eyes tight and making sure not to scream. She couldn't scream. She had to be strong. She had to be strong.

Then once she couldn't take it anymore, she screamed, shattering the silent evening air.

"It's alright, it's alright," Barad assured her over and over. Tauriel felt her life draining away from her fast. Her blood dripped down from the deep wounds and stained the grass. Tears streamed down her cheeks.

For the first time in a while, she thought about Legolas.

Wherever he was now, she hoped he was making a new life outside the Woodland Realm away from his father. He deserved better than to serve Thranduil.

_Legolas, I'm so so sorry_. _I know you that you were fond of me_. _I'm so sorry_.

She hoped that Legolas discovers his destiny of which Elbes had foreseen.

*After Tauriel's screams came the child's screams. Loud, desperate, hungry, and confused. She blinked several times to get the tears out of her eyes so that she can see her child.

"A girl," Barad said. Tauriel reached out for her daughter. She took it and cradled it in her arms, staring down at its beautiful eyes. The child had Goldberry's eyes staring back up at her with tears.

"Do not cry child. It's alright," Tauriel said, though she was weeping too.

"What is her name?" Barad asked. Tauriel hardly had to think about that. She knew what she was going to name her.

"Meleth. Her name is Meleth," Tauriel answered. Barad looked down at Tauriel's daughter with a grin.

It was then that Tauriel saw it.

First she noticed a light one of the likes of which she had never seen before surrounding her, the child, and Barad. It was the light of a fire-moon lighting the path by the mountain. She saw it floating over the mountain. A huge fire-moon with the colors of red and gold mixed together to produce a vibrant, brilliant light.

All her life, Tauriel loved the light of the stars, but this was something else entirely. She loved what she saw.

Barad followed her gaze and was in awe at the light of the moon as well. The sky had a peach color surrounding the moon to blend in with it. The moon almost looked like a weaker sun because of the colors and the light.

"It's beautiful," Barad said in a whisper.

For a couple more seconds, Tauriel was able to enjoy the light of the moon, but was then suddenly cut off by a violent fit of coughing. She quickly passed Meleth over to Barad's arms.

"Tauriel!" Barad hollered.

"It's alright. It's over. I go now to join my friends. They are waiting for me," Tauriel said.

"There is still time."

"No there is not," Tauriel insisted. She knew she only had a few more heartbeats left.

"Do you still have the stone?" Tauriel asked. Barad reached into a pocket of his robe and pulled out the rune-stone, of which the moonlight reflected beautifully off of. It made the runes seem to stand out, almost as if they were floating above the actual stone.

"Keep it. As a promise," Tauriel said, "look after her and take her to the fields of Lebennin. I trust you."

Barad was after all the only one left she can trust.**

*"I will. You have my word. Tauriel? Tauriel!" Barad cried out.

It was too late. Tauriel was gone.

Her eyes were gazing up at him without seeing. The remnant of color she had left in her skin faded away.

She was gone.

Barad felt fresh hot tears leave his eyes and spill down his cheeks. He sobbed out loud underneath the light of the fire-moon with Tauriel's body up against a tree in front of him. Meleth, unsure of how to respond, began sobbing along with him.

"Tauriel, oh Tauriel," Barad cried.**

*_White shores. Beyond that was a green country under a swift sunrise that never went away_. _Tauriel could feel herself floating until her feet landed on the grass. Then she saw them. Meleth, Alagos and Niniel were all waiting for her with joyful laughter. Tauriel laughed as she embraced each of them, embracing Alagos the longest._

"_Welcome, sister," Alagos said._

_ "Thank you brother," Tauriel replied. She looked around at the green fields around her. "It's good to be home_."

_It was the first time she truly felt at home_.**

*A young Elven child ran through the fields of Lebennin, laughing along the way, feeling the flowers as she rushed past them. They felt gentle and silky across her fingertips.

Barad watched her run towards him to end up in his arms. He had been to the fields once before, just like he told Tauriel. What he never told her however, was that he was standing in the fields holding his father's hand. It was one of the only moments of peace between him and his father. At least that was a good memory of Alagos he can have. It was also the only time he ever felt at home. Today, there wasn't a single cloud in the sky. The light of the sun made the white of the flowers look more intense, almost so intense even that it was overwhelming to look at them.

The gem may be back in Thranduil's possession, but Barad had a feeling that it won't remain that way forever. Meleth had a connection to the gem, the same way Tauriel did. She'll go get it back, in due time.

The child finally collapsed into his arms, laughing as she did. Barad laughed along with her and sighed. He thought about one of his first conversations with Tauriel.

"_Meleth was a good friend to you, yes_?" _Barad had asked her._

_ "Her dream was to one day go to the fields of Lebbenin. She tells me they are filled with Mallos,_" _Tauriel replied._

"_It is. I have walked there. It is a beautiful place. I understand why Meleth would have wanted to go there_."

Barad picked Meleth up and looked into her gorgeous green eyes. It felt as if Tauriel was staring back at him.

"Well done, Meleth. You made it to the fields," Barad said, playfully tapping Meleth's nose. The child giggled and squeezed her little eyes shut at the touch.

Barad looked around at the fields. The white flowers mingling close together made it look as though he was standing on a large white cloud.

A certain excitement he had not felt in a long time came spiraling up his throat. He was back in the fields. Here, he felt at home. He and Meleth can make themselves a home here.

"Well, I'm back," Barad said.**

**Final AN: I would like to thank:**

**Gartabro, a Fanfiction author who was my 'continuity guide' while I was working on the first volume. Her aid in making sure I don't screw up the timeline and continuity helped me immensely.**

**Fictitious Fan for being my 'grammar editor' for the very first story. I love writing, but grammar can be my worst enemy. Thank you for helping me make the first story look fairly polished.**

**Elfin Maid, a Fanfiction author who has been a faithful reader and supporter since the beginning. Thank you so much for your continued support and encouragement. A lot of my reasons for making it to the end of the series without stopping is because of your support. For the rest of you reading, check out her Tauriel fanfics. They're very well-written and entertaining. She knows how to write the character Tauriel.**

**He probably won't read this, but I have to thank Peter Jackson for bringing Tolkien's work to the big screen in such a phenomenal way. Without him, Tauriel wouldn't have existed and this series would not have been possible. Thank you Jackson for giving us an incredible film saga set in Middle-Earth and for bringing the world of Middle-Earth to life. Return of the King is my all-time favorite movie.**

**And last but not least, I have to thank the late J.R.R. Tolkien for creating the world of Middle-Earth in the first place. His works were a huge influence for this series, given the times when I brought in characters like Morgoth and Tom Bombadil and Goldberry into the picture and the places and the pieces of mythology included. He deserves so much of the credit for this. Thanks Tolkien!**

**I hope you guys really enjoyed reading this series as much as I enjoyed writing it. It's sad to know that it's over. When I first thought about writing a Middle-Earth fanfic, it sounded so intimidating to me because Middle-Earth is such a rich and complex world, but I'm glad that I gave it a shot. If there are any questions about the series you would like to ask me, please don't hesitate to ask, and I can set up a Q&amp;A as the next 'chapter'. Also, if you have any requests for me to write a particular fanfic, send that to me also. For the time being, I'm working on an RWBY fanfic series called _Team Ozpin_ in case you're interested. Thank you everyone for reading!**


	11. Behind the Scenes Look

**Here's a behind the scenes look at my now-completed series ****_The Silvan Elf! _****If you have any additional questions, please send them my way!**

Series One

The original outline for Series One was very different then the way it actually turned out. All I knew was that I needed Alagos away from Tauriel by the end of the volume so that she would practically be forced to have to get along with Legolas because she had become really comfortable with Alagos, and I needed things to happen that would move Tauriel towards being the 'killing machine' that she is in the films. Let's face it, she's not exactly the nicest person in the films, so I needed to figure out how she was going to get there. I had to figure out how she was going to become "battle-hardened".

Originally, Meleth was actually not going to die in the Gold Snow arc. I had originally planned for her to be a recurring character like Barad and Alagos, but decided against it because the end of the arc really needed an impact that Tauriel was not going to walk away unscarred from. Meleth's death also added a certain level of depth to the end of the entire series as I'm sure you readers have noticed, and it sets up Tauriel's discovery of the black gem in the second volume with the return of Meleth's father to reclaim it.

The song about the Fields of Lebbenin was sung by none other than Legolas in the _Lord of the Rings _book trilogy.

The name Tharbadir (Meleth's "boyfriend") is actually Sindarin Elvish for "Frodo". I really don't know why I did that.

I was pretty upset when BOTFA explained the backstory of Legolas's mother. Granted it was handled well in the movie, but after spending all that time working on Elbes and making sure it fit, it felt like all that was for nothing with the explanation in the movie. As I'm sure you readers can guess, the revelation that Elbes was a caretaker for Legolas pretending to be his mother was sort of a last-minute thing to clean up the continuity mess. It may not have been the best explanation, but it was the best I felt like I can come up with without it completely detracting from the story that was going on in Series Three.

Anton was a rather…unique name choice for the villain that I came up with. The name Anton was inspired by Anton LaVey (although there are literally dozens of people named Anton in history), who was the founder of the Church of Satan. I know, it's weird, but it made sense to me because the Anton in this series basically worshipped Sauron, and even referred to him as Mairon (which is the Quenya word to refer to Sauron). He made sacrifices in Sauron's name and was determined to restore Sauron's presence in Middle-Earth.

Series Two

A lot of LOTR fans had a problem with the fact that Tauriel had the ability to heal Kili's leg wound in _The Desolation of Smaug _even though she's not very far up the ranks and of course because she's a lot younger then, say, Arwen. So with this series I really wanted to address the issue, in fact it was one of the first things I thought about when I first went into the series. And honestly, what better way to explain that part then to have Arwen herself involved? I liked the fact that I was able to use her for her part while at the same time making sure she doesn't completely "steal the show" so to speak.

I loved the idea of sending Legolas to Gundabad while Tauriel had to stay behind and go through her final trial alone. It was important that she did it alone because up until that point, she had other people helping her. Also, at that point in the series, I had decided that Tauriel really was the main protagonist of the series and even though Legolas had a consistent presence in the series too, it was also fun to not only "get rid of him" so that Tauriel would be alone during her final trial and the battle afterwards but also to make a nod to Legolas's knowledge of Gundabad and the real fate of her mother from BOTFA without it dominating the story. It was also a lot of fun to point out how Legolas knows Gandalf. In my opinion, making nods to the films through little things is better than through big stuff that endangers the flow of the story.

I didn't want Tauriel to become Captain of the Woodland Guard without there being a catch. At this point, I was realizing that Tauriel's life is actually kind of tragic. Her isolation from the rest of the world under the authority of a greedy, selfish king was already pretty sad to begin with, and taking what we know from the films, this girl doesn't really lead a very happy life. Her promotion to Captain had to carry a significant amount of weight to increase her disdain towards Thranduil. By killing off Niniel who was already Captain made Tauriel's promotion bittersweet, made more sad by the fact that she didn't get to know Niniel as much as she would have liked, especially considering the fact that Niniel turned out to be one of Tauriel's nephews.

Alagos' separation between spirit and body and Anton's ability to interrogate Alagos by grabbing his head and extracting information was all inspired by the recent Middle-Earth video game _Shadows of Mordor_. I liked to think that Anton went through the same thing that Talion from the game went through. I think it added a nice layer of doom to the fact that Sauron was getting closer to rising again.

Coming up with what Anton's purpose was was a lot of work. I had to try and figure out exactly how Anton was going to "open the gates" for Sauron to come to Dol Guldur. The twist that he was the Mouth of Sauron fit perfectly to me because he was already immortal, which made sense for his appearance in _Return of the King_. I had to explain how Anton was able to live for over a hundred years given that he was just a Man, so with a little bit of inspiration from _Shadows of Mordor _and the conclusion that he will be the Mouth of Sauron, I was able to explain it pretty well I think.

The name Takhbork, Anton's "helper" Orc, is actually my real name translated in Black Speech, ha ha! My true name is Forrest. Yes, like Forrest Gump.

The name Niniel was actually the name given to Nienor by her brother Turin in _The Children of Hurin _by J.R.R. Tolkien and edited by his son Christopher. I like the parallel between the two Niniels because both of their lives end tragically, they both live without really knowing what happened to their parents, and they both have a brother (except Niniel from _Children _unknowingly married hers). If you haven't read _The Children Of Hurin_, I strongly recommend you do. It's a huge must-read for fans of Middle-Earth.

Originally, I was going to have Gollum in one of the stories whom Alagos encounters on his way back to the Woodland Realm to warn them of the impending attack by Anton, but I cut this because it detracted from Tauriel's story.

Series Three

At this point in the series, I was beginning to piece together the larger themes of the series. Themes of family and finding your true home became prevalent, and I loved the contrast between Tauriel's journey in this series with the journeys from _The Hobbit _and _The Lord Of The Rings_. Frodo and Bilbo left the comforts of home to go on an adventure into the unknown, while Tauriel set off on an adventure to _find_ her home. The phrase "return to me" became a hugely important theme in the series because there are a good number of reunions by the end of the series like Tauriel seeing her parents again, reuniting with Alagos, and finally getting to be reunited with her lost friends in the Undying Lands.

Tying the series into the _Hobbit _films was actually a much harder task than I thought it would be, because I didn't want the series to become a line-by-line adaptation of the movies. I wanted to make sure that I only described the details in certain scenes in the movies that were beneficial for the story I was telling. For example, I had the scene where Tauriel talks to Kili while he's in his cell word for word because it was important for the story I was telling. Tauriel ends up with the rune-stone later and adopts the promise that Kili once made to his mother. Tauriel eventually returns to her mother but the reunion isn't exactly very pleasant, making for a less satisfying experience than Kili probably could have had with his own mother. Tauriel barely has a relationship with her mother, while Kili seems to not only have one with his own mother in the first place, but also a good one.

When it came to figuring out who Tauriel's real parents were, I didn't want to just make them up. If I was going to make the readers wait a long time to learn the identity of Tauriel's real parents, they had to be familiar and rooted in Tolkien's mythology somehow. I knew pretty far in advance that Tauriel's real parents were going to be Tom Bombadil and Goldberry because Tauriel's powers and her connection to the gem made good evidence of that conclusion. Tolkien scholars (yes there's a such thing) have believed for a long time that Tom and Goldberry are Maiar spirits from the Ainur race, so I decided to actually make that the case here in this series. I even got a copy of _The Fellowship of the Ring _to get Tom's and Goldberry's personalities right, though Goldberry was easy because she doesn't even talk that much in the series.

This is just from my own perspective, but I feel that the main antagonist of the series was Thranduil. Sure Sauron had a few appearances and sure there was Anton, but they weren't really antagonists that directly affected Tauriel's life with the exception of Anton killing Niniel which led to Tauriel becoming Captain of the Woodland Guard. I've concluded that Thranduil is probably the main antagonist in the series. Finding out that the reason why he treated Tauriel the way he did through most of the series, and finding out that he deceived Tauriel by allowing her to take the gem, leave for the Old Forest, and purify the gem, so that he can track her down and take it for himself as a way of revenge against her family for the death of his sister really does win him that position in the story. Plus he knew that the gem was a secret Silmaril and it's a _white _gem, the likes of which he's drawn to. On top of all of that, he basically killed Tauriel at the end. Sigh, I need to get out in the sun more often.

The idea of Tauriel going to Bree and getting attacked there was a way to explore how Tauriel is welcomed into the outside world after leaving the place she had stayed stuck in for six hundred years. She sees how dangerous she can be beyond the Woodland Realm and realizes the safety in the kingdom compared to the safety outside of it.

Radagast's line "Strange business, time" is a line from _Doctor Who _when Sylvester McCoy played the seventh Doctor. Sylvester McCoy played Radagast the Brown in the _Hobbit _films.

The Anca Woods in Rohan was actually completely made up by me. "Anca" is Sindarin for "jaws". Completely making up a new territory in Middle-Earth is not uncommon. In the _Hobbit _films, Peter Jackson made up the High Fells of Rhudaur which Gandalf visits to investigate the Necromancer (who was really Sauron of course).

Barad's line "Well, I'm back" is the same line Samwise Gamgee had at the end of _Return of the King_, both in the book and the movie.

**Thank you for reading this stuff! If I think of anything extra to list, I'll add a new "chapter". On another note, I'm thinking about writing a sequel series about Tauriel's daughter Meleth. The gem is still in Thranduil's possession after all, and I think it would make a really compelling story. Add the fact that it would take place during the events of the Lord of the Rings trilogy. We'll see! Keep your eyes peeled and maybe something may come your way!**


End file.
